


A Threat From Within

by DianneRose2016



Series: Becoming Clay Hayes Series [1]
Category: SEAL Team (TV)
Genre: Angst, Date Rape, Drama, Emotional Hurt, Family, Hurt/Comfort, fake suicide, major character death-sort of, mentions of childhood trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-08
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:48:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 128,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27454513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DianneRose2016/pseuds/DianneRose2016
Summary: A threat to Bravo Team is a threat to them all. But when that threat comes from within Bravo it is one they never saw coming. Vic has no interest in playing 2IC to Clay, he wants to be the one that leads Bravo. In order to do that he has to get Clay out of Bravo and he will stop at nothing to be the shining star of Bravo and get Clay far away from them.
Series: Becoming Clay Hayes Series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2005888
Comments: 30
Kudos: 78





	1. Chapter 1

It had been some of the worst thirty hours of his life. Clay could not believe he was still laying her on this rooftop in the pouring rain looking through his scope waiting for the right moment he would be able to pull the trigger. His whole body was aching from keeping his position for so long, but he was trained for this. This had been the longest though he had to stay in one spot waiting for the perfect shot to take out their target. It wasn't often they went on operations where they needed to eliminate a target versus capturing them. When it came across to them that they would need to have a sniper pull the trigger that left it up to Clay or Ray. After a short debate, it was decided that Clay would be the one to go up high while the rest of them were watching from the building below him. Clay did his best to ignore the fact that everyone else would be nice and warm and not soaking wet and freezing his ass off. Or his junk off for that matter. The cold and rough cement that made up the building was soaking the cold in and with it being zero out, he was freezing after thirty hours.

Clay was doing his best to ignore how exhausted he was feeling with having to stay perfectly still looking through his scope. His eyes were tired and his whole body was sore from laying in his position with his upper body up slightly, so his lower back was killing him. He had started to shiver about twenty hours ago, but he couldn't do anything but allow his teeth to chatter or he risked messing up the shot when he was able to take it. With his com being open so he wouldn't have to move to speak everyone could hear his teeth chattering. Clay just needed their target to move just a little but then he would be able to get his shot. Clay gave a deep cough and he was hoping it wouldn't mean he was getting sick.

"I don't like that cough." Trent said to the others.

"He's been out there for over thirty hours now, I'm surprised he hasn't coughed more." Sonny said.

"At what point do we pull him Boss?" Trent asked. As the medic, he was very worried about what Clay's body was going through right now.

"We need to eliminate the target and Clay is the one with the best shot at it. We just gotta play it out right now." Jason said. He didn't like this any more than they did. He hated that Clay was the one that had to be out there, especially in this weather. But Clay had the best chance at making this shot, especially in this weather.

"The longer he is out there the higher his chances of hypothermia and frostbite. It's already been thirty hours any longer and he will be affected." Trent argued.

"When we reach that point we can re-evaluate." Jason said.

"I don't get it. Why is it Clay and not Ray? Ray has a lot more experience than Clay does. Shouldn't he be the one to take the shot?" Vic asked. He still was getting used to being on the team, but he wasn't really sure what the big deal was with Clay. It seemed like everyone was interested in him. The Upper Brass all liked him and the team talked about him, even the support staff talked about him and how great he was. Vic had yet to see it.

"I got the experience, but Clay has a gift. He has better aim than me and he can calculate faster and more complex situations. For this type of shot, he's the better man." Ray answered honestly.

"Why would he need to calculate anything though? It's a straight shot." Vic asked.

"It's not though, because our target could move, there's the wind and other factors that we need to consider. I can calculate pretty quick, but Clay is better at it and he can add in additional variables to help him get the perfect shot." Ray explained.

"The kid is a human calculator." Sonny added.

Vic still didn't see the big deal for Clay to be taking the shot. It should have been the one with the most experience, that's how it always worked. Clay was number six on the team, yet it felt like he was number three or two at times. He was always there for strategy discussions. He was the one that Jason would talk strategy with or get him to lead a team when they had to divide up. It made no sense to Vic why they would ever turn to Clay over someone who had been there longer. To Vic it just seemed like everyone was blowing smoke up Clay's ass to make him feel special when he didn't deserve it.

They could all hear that Clay's teeth finally stopped chattering and Vic couldn't help but let out a sigh. "Finally, I was getting sick of listening to his teeth." Vic said.

All eyes went to him and Vic could tell they didn't appreciate what he said, but he didn't understand why. It wasn't like he was the only one to be annoyed by listening to it.

"His teeth chattering is the only indication that we had he didn't have hypothermia. Now that they've stopped, he has started the progress of being hypothermic." Trent said, not impressed at all.

"Talk to me kid." Jason said.

"I'm not getting as cold anymore, so that's not good. I'm fine though. I can see movement, target is getting ready to be on the move soon. I'll have my shot once I see him clearly." Clay said, and they could tell his words were a little slower than normal.

"Trent, how long we got before we're in the danger zone?" Jason asked.

"An hour at most. After that I can't risk it. He's already going to get sick from being out there that long."

"And the kid getting sick is never a good thing." Sonny added.

"You got one hour before I pull you." Jason said to Clay.

"Copy boss." Clay said back.

"I can go up now if you want." Ray offered.

"No let's wait it out. He might be able to get the shot off before I gotta pull him. He's already soaking wet and hypothermic, there's no point in having two of you sick." Jason said.

"Why is it such a big deal if Spenser gets sick?" Vic asked.

"He's one of those ones that go from zero to a hundred in no time flat." Sonny answered.

"Clay can get a simple cold and it can turn into pneumonia. He's also allergic to a lot of medications with being allergic to phosphate, so it's tricky when he does get sick. Thankfully, he takes very good care of himself so it's not often he gets sick." Trent explained.

"Why would being allergic to phosphate be an issue with medications?" Vic asked.

"It's what is used to bind pills mostly. He can't even take normal vitamins or over the counter medications. It has to be liquid gels." Trent answered.

"Hm." Vic said. It sounded like treating Clay would be a serious pain in the ass for Trent. It was just another reason why Vic didn't understand why they would ever put any effort into Clay.

It was forty minutes later when they heard the shot ring out. They were all looking out the windows and they could see the panic instantly start.

"Target has been eliminated." Clay's very tired voice said coming over their radios.

"Let's move out. Vic, you go and get Clay and meet Soony at the car. We'll cover you." Jason ordered.

Vic just gave a nod and headed out. He liked it when Jason gave him a solo job, even if it was to collect Clay and make sure he got to the car that Sonny would be waiting in. He had been waiting to prove himself to the team that he was a valuable asset and he would make them all proud. He arrived at the rooftop that Clay was on and saw that Clay was already heading towards him. Vic didn't even say anything just turned and headed back down with Clay behind him. He saw Sonny already there waiting with the car so they got in.

"We're good, go." Vic ordered as he turned to keep watch around them.

"Kid you good?" Sonny asked Clay as he headed off.

"Ya." Clay said with a slurred speech and Sonny knew that was not good.

"Start getting him warm." Sonny ordered Vic, as he focused on the road.

Vic turned to look at Clay and saw that he was grabbing one of the blankets that were in the car. Vic figured that Clay had it so he kept his eyes on the outside, making sure they weren't followed all the way back to base. By the time they arrived at the plane Clay was barely conscious in his seat. Before Vic could even get out of the car the door on Clay's side was being open and Trent was there looking at Clay.

"Why aren't you warming him up?" He demanded.

"He had a blanket on him." Vic answered as he got out with his gear.

"He needs more than a fucking blanket." Trent hissed.

"What do you need Trent?" Sonny asked, more than happy to help.

"I gotta get him in, but with as few moves as possible. We need to go slow so we don't cause a problem with his heart." Trent explained before he turned his attention to getting Clay to open his eyes. "Clay, come on brother."

Clay let out a soft whine as he fought to open his eyes. He could see Trent's concerned face and he knew he had to focus, but it was hard to keep his eyes open.

"That's it brother, I need you to stay awake for a little longer. Come on." Trent said, as he started to help get Clay out of the car.

Clay wanted nothing more than to sleep, but he knew Trent wouldn't let him. He forced his eyes to stay open as best as he could and forced his body to move in the direction Trent wanted him to be. The second he was standing though his legs were not having it. He felt himself going down, but strong arms held him up. Clay knew without even having to look who exactly those arms belong to.

"I got you." Jason said as Clay placed his head down on Jason's chest.

The guys couldn't believe how bad Clay looked. Every part of his skin that wasn't covered was tinted blue. His lips were very blue and they knew he needed to get warmed up and quick. Jason and Trent very carefully got Clay up onto the plane as Davis came running over to them with towels and dry clothes for Clay.

"Towels and clothes, what else do you need?" Davis asked.

"Thermal blanket and he'll need to be on a cot." Trent said.

Davis went over and headed to get it ready.

"Jace, hold him up while we get his clothes off and dry him. We have to be careful, just pat him down, don't rub. We need to be careful of sudden movements for his heart." Trent said.

The team all grabbed towels, minus Vic who went and started to put gear away. The support staff, Mandy and Davis turned around to give Clay some privacy. Blackburn went over and joined the team to help get Clay sorted. Together they all got Clay removed of all of his clothes and dried off as best as they could. They got a dry pair of boxers and pants on him, but Trent stopped them after that.

"No shirt, he's too cold we need to do skin on skin. One of you will need to take your shirt off and help warm him up." Trent said as he went to work on checking Clay's vitals.

"I got it." Jason said he was still holding Clay and Clay seemed happy to be in his arms.

"You sure, I don't mind Boss." Sonny offered.

"Ya, I generate more body heat." Jason answered.

"Cot and blanket are all set for you guys." Davis said, turning back around now that Clay had some clothes on.

"Thanks Davis." Ray said on their behalf.

"Alright, let's get him lying down and start warming him up. We got hot water bottles?" Trent asked Davis real quick.

"Yup, one."

"Grab it."

Davis gave a nod and headed off to get that ready while Trent and Jason got Clay laying down on the cot with the thermal blanket under his torso. Jason removed his gear and Ray held his hand out for it. He then removed his boots and shirt before getting onto the cot on the wall side. He wanted to make sure that Trent had access to Clay when he needed it. Davis came back over with the water bottle and Trent took it with a small nod of thanks. He placed it next to Clay's groin to help warm up his lower half as he spoke.

"Chest to chest Boss."

Jason put his right arm underneath Clay and pulled him slowly against his chest. He couldn't believe how cold Clay was and he couldn't help the sharp intake of breath. Trent wrapped them in the thermal blanket and put another blanket over that covering their whole bodies. Jason wrapped his left arm over Clay's body and held him close to his chest, tucking Clay's head under his chin. Clay had long ago since given up any hope of keeping his eyes open. They knew his body was beyond exhausted from the hypothermia, so they didn't hold it against him.

"He gonna be ok?" Brock asked, as Trent checked Clay's temperature.

"Eighty-eight. Once he gets warmed up he will be. I'll need to keep an eye on him throughout the flight, but he should be fine by the time we land. He'll be tired and sore for a couple of days as his body finishes recovering, but he'll be ok." Trent said.

"You get some rest, I got him." Jason ordered.

"I will shortly. I want to make sure his breathing is ok." Trent said.

"Alright, everyone get ready for take off." Blackburn ordered.

Everyone headed to get their gear off. Ray made his way over to where Vic was standing. He had something he wanted to talk to him about and now seemed like the best time. Ray spoke as he started to remove his gear.

"Why are you over here and not helping us with him?"

"I didn't think seven people were needed to get him changed. Plus, he doesn't really know me all that well. I didn't think he would appreciate me seeing him naked and touching him." Vic said, but in reality he just didn't care enough to help. Seriously, there were six people trying to get him changed. It was ridiculous to him.

Ray gave a nod and he was accepting of his answer. "Fair enough. Trent is gonna be on you about proper medical treatment. We all aren't medics, but we all have extensive first aid training so we can help our brothers out until medics get there. It's important for you to have."

"Ya I'll ah read up on it all and get a refresher on it." Vic easily agreed.

"Good, it's important for you to have, especially with you being number two one day."

"Number two?" Vic asked, confused. He didn't exactly have plans of being just number two. He wanted to lead his own team, he wanted to lead Bravo one day. He thought that was why Ray was working with him so much.

"Ya 2IC to Spenser. Bravo will be his to lead one day, it's why I suggested to Jace that we pick you up. You'll be a great 2IC to Spenser. We just gotta get you ready for it." Ray said with a warm smile.

Vic couldn't believe this. Ray actually thought he would be happy with getting second place. That he would be happy with the fact that he got picked because they wanted him as second in command, because he was supposed to be good support for Clay. The very last thing he wanted was to be stuck under Clay. He wanted to be the one to lead Bravo. He wanted to be the one they relied on. He wanted to be the star rookie. Instead it was like he was going to be trapped under Clay forever. He was going to have to do something about it, because he was not going to be playing 2IC to Clay Spenser.

"I'll be ready, Boss." Vic said with a warm smile. He wasn't going to let on to anyone how he felt about Spenser. He knew that could be a one-way ticket out of here. He would need to come up with some sort of plan to handle Spenser.

Ray gave him a warm smile as he headed over to get his hammock set up. He was exhausted and was in need of some serious sleep.

It was a couple of hours later when Clay started to twitch in his sleep. Jason had been softly resting and the second he felt Clay move he opened his eyes. He saw that his guys were all asleep, but Cerb was right by the cot ready if they needed him to wake someone. Jason felt Clay twitch again and give a soft moan. He looked down and saw the slight wrinkle in Clay's forehead and he knew that Clay was having a bad dream.

"No...Ash don't go… take me." Clay mumbled.

Jason tightened his hold on Clay and rubbed his back. "It's ok Clay."

"It hurts...Ash stop…hurts."

Jason didn't even want to think what that could mean. He had known that Ash was a shitty father with Clay. He knew he was neglectful, but he couldn't help but wonder if he was also abusive. He could see the signs in Clay from time to time. The way he had some insecurities about his intelligence. The way he would distance himself from the group if he was going through a hard time. The way he could sometimes get overwhelmed by being in a large and loud group. How he prefered to read or learn something compared to hanging with the guys. Jason knew that Clay wasn't used to having family, but he could also tell that Clay wasn't sure how to fully be himself with them either. There were always these parts of himself that Clay kept to just himself and didn't share it with them. It was something Jason was going to be working with him on.

"Clay, come on wake up." Jason said, as he rubbed his hand along Clay's back.

It had been a couple of hours since Clay had fallen asleep, he was just starting to tremble slightly and Jason knew that Clay was at least getting better. He still had some blue to his skin though. Jason shook Clay again when he gave a painful moan. This time around Clay took in a sharp breath and his eyes slowly blinked open. Jason could see the confusion and fogginess in Clay's eyes. He knew that Clay didn't really understand what was going on.

"It's ok Clay, I got you. You're too cold and I'm trying to warm you up." Jason gently explained.

Clay on instinct curled up more into Jason's chest as he spoke with a soft and slow speech. "Warm...safe." Clay's eyes closed and Jason knew he was going to be asleep in a second. What he didn't expect was for Clay to speak again. "Dad...always...safe."

Jason knew Clay was asleep, but that didn't stop him from leaning his head forward and placing a kiss to Clay's head as he spoke. "I always will be, son."

They had never said it before, but Jason knew within his heart that Clay was his son, just as much as Mickey. He had no idea how Clay had managed to steal a piece of his heart, but it wasn't one he was looking to take back. He was glad that Clay saw him as a father, as someone that was safe. The kid desperately needed someone in his life that made him feel safe. Jason continued to hold onto Clay and eventually he fell asleep. Jason didn't know how many hours had passed when he felt himself being woken up by Blackburn.

"What's wrong?" Jason asked, looking down to make sure Clay was alright. He was very happy to see he was no longer blue.

"Alpha needs help. They got pulled on a mission to Boasan, Liberia to help protect a small aid station there that had been receiving threats. They received a new letter, but no one there is able to read it and the translator on their computers can't decode it either. It looks like it's in multiple Africian languages and they can't find anyone friendly to translate it. They need the kid."

The very last thing he wanted to do was have Clay out in the field when he was recovering from hypothermia, but he also couldn't leave Alpha behind to figure it out. They didn't have anyone that could speak the languages, only Clay could in the military. As much as he wanted to say no, he also knew that Clay would be pissed if they didn't stop to help them, regardless of how he would feel.

"How far out?" Jason asked.

"We're an hour away from landing. It's been four hours since we left. He's not blue anymore, but I know he's still going to be feeling the effects. He doesn't have to be in the field, he doesn't even have to leave the plane. We just need him to translate."

"Alright. Let's wake everyone, Trent will want to check him over too before we land."

Blackburn just gave a nod and he started the process of getting everyone up and awake, even support staff. That was a rule they had on Bravo, whether you were needed or not, if someone was awake and having to work, they all were. It was a family and that was how they operated. Jason could see the others waking up and getting moving. Davis was already getting coffee on so they could have a cup before they even landed. Jason honestly had no idea what they would do without her. She was amazing and always knew what they needed without them even having to say it. The team made their way over to him and Trent had some of Clay's clothes in his hand.

"How is he?" Sonny asked.

"His skin and lips aren't blue anymore, so that is progress." Trent said, as he rolled the thermometer across Clay's forehead.

"He up to temp?" Ray asked.

"93.6, he's slowly coming back up." Trent said, but they could tell he wasn't too happy with it.

"Shouldn't he be higher?" Brock said.

"He could have been colder then the thermometer was able to pick up if he reached hypothermia before his teeth stopped chattering." Trent said, not happy at all.

"Is that possible?" Ray asked.

"Can be. Sometimes a person's mind doesn't register how cold they are. Their brian tells their body that they should be shivering so the body does. He stopped shivering when his mind was able to focus on the target when he started to move around. He could have had hypothermia hours before we even got him out." Trent explained.

"What do we do for him?" Jason asked.

"We can't move him yet, not until his temp is up higher. They'll have to come to him and you need to keep giving him body heat." Trent answered.

"We can have Alpha on the plane working here. I can sit with him on the cot and he can translate what they need." Jason said.

"Will his mind be able to do it?" Sonny asked.

"He's going to have a delay, but he'll get it translated if he knows the languages." Trent answered.

"So then what do we do?" Vic asked. He wasn't sure why they were all awake when Alpha only needed Clay. It made no sense for him to have to be awake just to watch Clay translate some letter.

"Get ready to help. We don't know what could be in the letter." Ray answered.

Vic just gave a nod and headed off to get ready and get some coffee. The others started to get ready and when they landed Alpha and their team was already waiting for them outside of the cargo doors. Blackburn had informed them that they would need to come to them with Clay being injured. They were all happy to relocate. By the time they were ready they had a large whiteboard set up to write down the words that Clay translates for them. As Alpha team filed onto the plane Jason and Trent were tasked with getting Clay awake.

"Clay, come on kid wake up." Jason said, giving Clay a very gentle shake.

Clay gave a small moan and they knew they were getting somewhere.

"Set up where you need." Blackburn said, speaking with Alpha's support team.

"You cuddling buddies now?" Full Metal asked with a smirk as he walked over to the cot with Jason and Clay.

"He's got hypothermia." Jason answered as Trent tried to get Clay awake.

"Shit, how bad?" Derek asked, stepping closer to them now to check Clay over.

"Temp is just shy of ninety-five right now. It's been five hours since we started to warm him up." Trent answered.

"Should be higher than that. How long was he out in the weather?" Derek asked.

"Over thirty hours in pissing down rain and cold winds. My guess, he was hypothermic three to four hours before we got him out." Trent answered.

"The one time I'm not with you and he gets hypothermia." Full Metal said, not impressed.

"You being there wouldn't have mattered. We had a target elimination that only the kid would be able to make the shot." Jason said.

Between Derek and Trent they were finally able to get Clay to open his eyes. "That's it kid, let me see those baby blues of yours." Derek said.

"Der?" Clay said, very confused.

"Hey Spense. How you feeling?" Derek asked gently.

"Cold." He answered as his body started to shiver now that he was awake.

"You have hypothermia Clay. Jace has been warming you up. I got a long sleeved shirt that you can put on now and that will help along with the body heat." Trent said.

It was then that Clay noticed that he was curled up in Jason's arms. He should be bothered by it, but he was so exhausted and cold he couldn't bring himself to care. He just wanted to sleep right now.

"I know you are tired, but Alpha needs your help. We need your mind kid." Jason said, hoping that would help get Clay to stay awake.

"Mmk." Clay said with pure exhaustion in his voice, but he forced his eyes to stay open.

"We're gonna get you sitting up, get this shirt on you and then you can lean against Jace for his body heat. You don't have to get out of bed for this at all and afterwards you can sleep as long as you want." Trent said.

They saw Clay give a very small nod and between Jason, Trent and Derek they were able to get Clay sitting up and in his long sleeved shirt. They turned him so that Jason's back was against the wall of the plane and Clay was curled up in between Jason's legs. They had the thermal blanket over the both of them and the other blanket across their bottom half. Derek added a second blanket to cover them both up with to add more heat for Jason to give to Clay. Clay had his head turned enough so that he could look out at the plane and see the others. He noticed the large whiteboard with Davis standing next to it and he figured it had to do with whatever they woke him up for.

Derek came over and sat down on the cot with a piece of paper in his hand. He spoke as he showed Clay the paper. "We're in Boasan Liberia, we're trying to protect an aid camp that keeps getting attacked and receiving threatening letters. This letter came in, but no one there can read it. It's got multiple African languages in it. We need you to translate it."

"K." Clay said slowly.

Derek pointed to the first word, he knew that Clay's mind was going to be sluggish. They would have to do it word by word. "Can you tell me what this word is?"

Clay turned his head so his left side was against Jason's chest as he looked at the paper that Derek was holding up. He had to squint his eyes just to make the writing not blur together.

"Does he know it?" Vic asked, not sure why it was taking Clay so long to answer the question. He really didn't want to spend all this time waiting around for Clay to decide if he was going to talk or not.

"He knows it. He knows ten languages and each language sits in a box in his mind. When he needs to use one it takes him a nanosecond to mentally open the box. But with the hypothermia his mind is sluggish so it's taking him longer to recognize what the language is, get the box open, find that word and then translate it back into english." Derek explained.

"So it's going to take him awhile then." Vic complained.

"So what? You got a hot date or something you need to get to?" Full Metal asked, annoyed that Vic seemed to be complaining about the situation.

"Just not sure why we are all standing around waiting for Clay to translate. Surely there must be something more productive we can do with our time." Vic said.

"You want something productive to do, go clean the gear and make sure it's ready in case we need to go out." Jason ordered.

"You can't be serious." Vic said.

"I gave you an order, go do it." Jason snapped.

"Yes Sir." Vic bit out as he headed over to do as he was told.

"The." Clay finally said.

Derek gave him a warm smile as Davis wrote it down on the board. "Good Clay, what's this one?" Derek asked, pointing to the next word.

"Does your Rookie have a problem with the kid?" Franklin asked. He knew they all pretty much called Clay kid, it was just his nickname and it stuck with them all.

"Didn't think so, starting to think he does now though." Sonny answered.

"He's just trying to figure out how the team works and his place in it. Clay had trouble too." Ray pointed out.

"Clay had trouble in the sense that he was always asking questions about every order. He didn't have a problem with any of us on a personal level. Vic seems to have a personal problem with Clay." Sonny pointed out.

"I thought Clay asked questions because of his IQ." Full Metal said.

"He did, he does. It's why I've never given him shit for it. It's how he learns and his mind needs to learn and understand decisions to utilize later. Had to make sure he understood to not ask questions when the Upper Brass was around, to ask me about it later." Jason said.

"I don't know if it's personal. He's just the new guy and it can be hard coming into a team where everyone is so close." Ray said in Vic's defense.

"Can't be easy being the rookie and the guy that is ahead of you is younger too." Derek commented.

"Clay is only a few years under Vic though." Brock said.

"He's younger? How old is the kid?" Franklin asked.

"Twenty-seven." Jason answered.

"This is his third year on the team though. Shit he was twenty-four when he started? That's gotta be the youngest in history." Franklin said, impressed.

"He is. It's why the Upper Brass likes him so much." Blackburn said.

"Plus he's bilingual when it comes to pipe hitters and cake eaters. He can see both sides and that makes them very happy." Ray added.

"American." Clay answered.

"Wow, I'm with the rookie, this is gonna take awhile." Sonny said with a whistle.

"It's not his fault." Trent said.

"Didn't say it was." Sonny agreed.

It took them an hour before they were finally halfway through the letter, but Clay was dropping on them. He was struggling to keep his eyes open and it was taking longer for him to register the words and to speak.

"I don't suppose half is enough?" Sonny asked.

"We still don't know what they could be planning. We only have the location and their religious rant in the beginning. We need to know what else is in the letter." Davis said.

Trent went over to the cot with a mug in his hands. He bent down as he spoke. "Clay, I need you to drink some of this."

"What is it?" Jason asked.

"Hot chocolate. It'll help warm him up and hopefully keep him awake for a little longer." Trent answered.

Jason took the mug and held it up to Clay as he spoke. "Clay, come on I need you to drink some of this."

Clay groaned as he forced his eyes open to see that Jason had a mug up to his mouth. Clay slowly moved a shaky hand up to the mug and with Jason's help guided it to his lips and he took a small sip. Jason continued to help Clay drink until half of the hot chocolate was gone and Clay stopped tolerating being forced to drink. Trent took the mug as Derek and Jason got Clay back on track with the translations. When there were only five words left they were losing Clay and they were losing him hard. The hypothermia was making him beyond exhausted and his mind was extremely sluggish. His mind was focused on keeping his body warm, it wanted to shut him down so he could sleep and get warm. He was also starting to feel the pain in his body from being in one position on the roof for over thirty hours.

"I need you to stay awake just a little longer Clay. I know you are exhausted and hurting, we just need five more words." Jason said, trying to keep Clay awake. Trent moved so he was sitting on the cot and started to massage Clay's lower back to try and relieve some of the pain,

"Do we need the last five words?" Sonny asked.

"It would be helpful to have." Ray said.

"Sleep...please." Clay mumbled as his eyes were closing again.

"I know you need sleep. We just need these last five words Clay please. I need you to do this for me and then I promise you can sleep as much as your body needs." Jason said.

"Can you tell me this word kid?" Derek said gently. He knew Clay was fighting with everything in him to stay awake, but it wasn't that simple. His body was just exhausted and from the hypothermia it was done.

Clay forced his eyes open and with a lot of prodding and encouragement from Jason and Derek he was able to get the last five words and they finally had the translation. There was going to be an attack on the aid worker camp and now they knew who was going to be doing the attack and when. They could get people to safety now and stop this. Clay placed his head against Jason's chest once again.

"Sleep?" Clay asked softly.

"Ya kid you can sleep. You did good." Jason said.

Clay's eyes instantly closed and they knew he would be asleep within seconds. Trent continued to massage Clay's back as Derek spoke.

"We gotta get to the aid camp and get them evacuated and prepare for the attack."

"We'll back you up." Jason said.

"Gear up." Blackburn ordered.

The guys all headed off to get ready and Jason slowly moved Clay down so he was laying on his right side. Him and Trent got him fully covered up and once they were confident that Clay would be ok they got up.

"Cerb, stay with Clay." Jason said.

Cerberus got up onto the cot and curled up behind Clay trying to give him some heat from his own little body. Jason gave Cerb's head a rub before he headed off to get ready himself. Once they were all set, they all took one last look over at Clay before they headed out. They knew he was safe here on the plane with Bravo and Alpha's support staff plus Blackburn, Davis and Mandy were here. They would make sure he was ok and most likely he would be asleep the whole time.

It was three hours later when Clay started to wake up. He instantly noticed that he was cold and his whole body was sore, but he could think clearly at least. He knew he was laying on a cot within their plane. He could remember being on the rooftop waiting for the shot to eliminate their target. He couldn't remember getting to the plane or going to sleep, but he figured his brothers must have made sure he was ok. He opened his eyes and he felt Cerb behind him press his nose up against the back of his neck. Clay looked around and he noticed that Bravo was not the only team here. He noticed Alpha's support team was here and he knew that something was going on.

Clay pushed himself up and his whole body protested at his movements. He knew he must have gotten hypothermia for his body to be this sore and for him to be this cold. He slowly forced his body to get up and he slowly made his way over to where Blackburn, Davis and Mandy were. They all looked up at him as he approached.

"Spenser, you should not be moving around right now." Blackburn said.

"How are you feeling?" Davis asked, concerned.

"Cold and sore. I'm assuming I got hypothermia." Clay's speech was back to normal, but they could tell he was still suffering from the after effects.

"You did. You'll be feeling a little off for a couple of days Trent said. And will probably get sick." Blackburn said.

"Where are we?" Clay asked.

"Boasan. Alpha team needed some help with translating a letter that was in three African languages. We stopped so you can translate the letter. You did, and now both teams are out there stopping the threat. They are on their way back shortly. The attack was stopped and they were able to apprehend the organization that was behind these attacks." Blackburn explained.

"We're in Boasan?" Clay asked, picking up that piece of information over the rest.

"We are." Mandy answered.

"We got a spare vehicle?" Clay asked.

"We do. Why?" Blackburn answered.

"I need to leave for a little bit. There's something I have to do."

"You can't go anywhere, especially alone." Blackburn instantly said. Jason would kill him.

"I'll have my weapon and I'll go with a GPS so you can track me. This is something I need to do. Please."

It was the tone in Clay's voice that told Blackburn that there was something going on that he wasn't aware of. He could tell that Clay was going regardless of what anyone said to him. He knew that Jason was going to have a fit, but he could always get the team to meet up with Clay while he was out there.

"Alright." Blackburn said.

"Thank-you. Davis, do we have any chocolate or candy?"

"Um, ya some. Why?" Davis asked, confused.

"I need to bring it with me."

"Ok." Davis said, as she got up to grab it and Clay went off to get ready himself. He grabbed his handgun, but he was leaving his rifle behind. He wouldn't need it where he was going and it would only make people nervous.

Once he was ready, Davis handed him a duffle bag full of chocolate and candy from both their stock and Alpha's. He gave her a smile as he took the keys and the GPS tracker from Blackburn and he headed out. Clay knew that the team, especially Jason was going to be pissed that he left the plane alone and still technically injured, but he had to do this. He had no idea he needed to do this until he heard where they were. He couldn't leave without seeing it.

"Jason is going to kill you." Mandy said to Blackburn.

"Probably. Let's get the tracker up on a screen so we can follow him." Blackburn said to Davis.

Davis pulled it up on a screen and Blackburn radioed into the teams.

"Havoc to Bravo One."

"Ya go ahead Havoc." Jason said.

"Spenser is awake and he is on his way to an unknown location."

"What do you mean he's on his way somewhere? Why did he leave? Why did you let him leave?" Jason demanded, pissed as well.

"When he found out where we were he said he had to go somewhere to handle something. There was no talking the kid out of it. He's got his gun and he has a GPS tracker with him. We are following him right now. I don't know what is going on with him, but there was no telling him no this time around."

"Has he stopped moving?"

"Not yet. He just left."

"Send us his location, we'll head out to him and see what the hell is wrong with him."

"We'll send it through. Is the situation down there wrapped up?"

"We are loading the guys now. Alpha will bring them back and we'll head for the kid."

"Copy that."

Blackburn put the phone down and Davis spoke. "Well that went well."

"I wouldn't want to be Spenser when they find him." Mandy added.

"Well hopefully they can find him and everything goes well. Whatever is going on with the kid, he obviously felt like he had to do this." Blackburn said.

Davis sent the GPS tracker to Jason's phone so he could follow where Clay went. All they could do was hope that everything would be ok.

The others were all standing around and they could hear what Blackburn had to say about Clay. No one was impressed at this moment.

"What the fuck is the kid thinking?" Sonny demanded.

"I don't know Sonny, but we're gonna have to go and get him." Jason said, pissed as well.

"Where does he even think he's going? There's nothing around here." Ray said.

"He is still suffering the effects of hypothermia. He shouldn't be going anywhere alone and he shouldn't be driving. He knows that, so wherever he is going must be important to him to risk it." Trent said.

"Whatever his reason, once he's healed enough he's running hills for weeks for this. Alpha, you guys take the prisoners back to your plane. Bravo is going to meet up with the kid." Jason said.

"I'll go with you." Full Metal said.

"Me too, just in case something pops off." Derek said.

Jason gave a nod and they all got organized and into the right vehicles. Vic got into the one with Jason, Trent and Ray. He couldn't understand why so many of them were all going after Clay. It wasn't like they couldn't track him from the GPS and if he wanted to go somewhere that was on him. Why did they all need to go after him when they were already doing a mission that wasn't theirs to begin with. It was all so crazy to him, but he also knew that if he said something he would be the one in the wrong. So he sat there and kept his mouth shut. He knew that once Bravo got to Clay they would lay into him and he would be able to get a front row seat to it all.

They arrived an hour later into this very small village with homes that were falling apart. There were kids running around in the street kicking a soccer ball. They had no idea why Clay was here, but they saw the military vehicle parked outside one of the homes. Trent parked their vehicle right next to it and they all got out. The house was one of the worst ones. It was more away from the others and it was falling apart. It was one level and maybe six hundred square feet. It was a very small house, more like a shack.

They all got out and they headed inside. The house inside was just as bad as the outside. They could see a small living room and a makeshift kitchen. There was a very short hallway with three very small rooms, one of which was a bathroom that had a toilet and a bucket with a hose coming from the wall for the shower. They finally found Clay in the last room in the house. He was just leaning against a stone desk looking over at the small toddler size thin mattress on the floor with an old dirty blanket sitting on it. The walls all had some kind of math all over them that had been scraped into them.

Jason turned his attention to his youngest member. He could see the tremble in Clay's body, he was still clearly not feeling well and should be in bed. Knowing that Clay took this risk was enough to fuel his already growing anger.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Do you have any idea how stupid it is for you to be out of bed, much less out on your own in a hostile area? How can you be this stupid? How can you be this reckless? You know you are not supposed to be going anywhere alone. You know you have to clear it by me first before you go off somewhere when we are not Stateside and yet you went behind my back and came out here all on your own. You knew I would never have let you come here with us or alone and yet you did it anyways. So help me god Spenser you better have one hell of a good reason to do this." Jason ranted.

"Clay come on man you are smarter than this shit. What the hell were you thinking? What the hell is so special about some piece of shit shack that you risked your life to come and see?" Sonny demanded, pissed off as well.

Clay didn't answer them right away and it was Ray that spoke up next. "Clay man, you gotta say something for this."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I knew you wouldn't let me come here even with all of you. I didn't know it was even something I had to see until I found out where we were." Clay said and his voice was filled with pain.

"What the hell is so special about this place that you would risk your life for?" Jason demanded.

"I grew up here. This was my room." Clay said with nothing but pain in his voice.

Instantly the atmosphere in the room changed. No longer were they all angry at Clay. They now understood why he needed to be here, why he needed to see it before they left. The depressing qualities of this room took on a whole new level. To know that Clay was the one that slept in this room. That he lived this way for his childhood was just depressing. They also had no idea what his life had been like before he was in the military. They knew he was from a village in Liberia, but they didn't know for how long or where he was from. Now they knew he was from a war torn village. Jason let out a small sigh as he went and leaned against the desk next to Clay to show him support. He wrapped his arm around Clay's shoulders and Clay instinctively leaned into the comfort.

"How old were you?" Sonny asked softly.

"I was five and I was here until I was eighteen. When I turned eighteen I was able to go back to the States on an aid worker plane. I had to wait until I was legally an adult before I could leave."

"And they were your grandparents?" Ray asked.

"Technically no, but yes."

"What do you mean?" Full Metal asked.

Clay took in a slow deep breath before he finally spoke. "Ash was never there growing up. He made it clear he didn't want a kid. My mom was a prostitute that he used to see frequently. She thought if she got pregnant he would stay with her and she would be able to have this great life. Only he refused to have anything to do with her once he found out. She continued to use while she was pregnant. I guess she figured he would come around to the idea of being a father. He didn't. For the first five years of my life we lived in this rundown apartment. She had her pimp and drug dealer move in with us and she continued to use and sleep with men in the apartment."

"What drug was she using?" Trent asked, now more concerned about Clay's health.

"Heroin, I was born addicted to it."

"And the doctors let your mom still have you?" Brock asked.

"They didn't know. Her pimp had some disgraced doctor there for the birth. I was never in the hospital."

"Jesus, it's a miracle you lived. Do you know if there were any complications from it?" Trent asked.

"Hard to say. She wasn't really a mom so it's hard to know if the heroin use was what made the development delays or if it was just her. At five I could barely walk, I didn't know how to talk, how to write or hold anything really. Fine motor skills didn't exist."

"How did you end up here then?" Derek asked.

"There was this older couple that moved into the apartment building next to ours. Their bedroom window looked into my mom's. We only had one bedroom so I would sleep in the closet in the hallway. They had lived there for about six months and had found me wandering around alone outside a dozen or so times. They brought me back home every time, but they found out that home wasn't all that great. They had called social services before, but nothing was ever done. They started to actually leave groceries at our door, they were hoping it would go to me."

"I'm guessing it didn't." Ray said.

"Three weeks before I got here, my mom ODed. I found her in the kitchen that morning. Mike, her pimp, had been gone for a few days. He didn't come back until almost two weeks later. I thought she was sleeping so I grabbed a pillow and blanket from the couch and got her comfortable. When she didn't wake up I just thought she was really tired. That night I curled up on the floor with her so when she woke up she wouldn't be alone. I didn't know what dead was. I just figured she was asleep and when Mike came home almost two weeks later he told me she was dead. That that's what smelt so bad. He took her somewhere, I don't know where, and buried her. When he came back he told me it was on me to make the money now. I had no idea what he was talking about, but two days later there was this guy in the house and Mike was nowhere to be found."

Everyone was dead silent as they listened to Clay telling them his story. A story he obviously had never told anyone based on the deep pain within his voice. To hear that he had problems right from the start with his health was bad, but then to find his own mother dead. To have slept next to her and had her body decaying in front of him for two weeks, it was heartbreaking. All of this was heartbreaking and they knew it was only the start. There was only one thing a grown man would want with a five year old boy and they were all praying he didn't go through that. Well, everyone except for Vic. He was keeping a straight face, but inside he was happy as hell. He wanted Clay to have suffered. It would be something he could use later on against him. He was praying that Clay had been touched as it was just another thing he could use against him.

"He brought me up into the bedroom and then it was just dumb luck that he didn't close the curtains. That my grandparents were in their bedroom with their curtains open. They saw that we were both naked and he was coming towards me. The next thing I knew the door was being slammed open and Gramps was beating the living shit out of him. I found out later when I got back to the States that he died that night from his injuries. Broken jaw, multiple skull fractures that caused bleeding and swelling on his brain."

"He got what he deserved." Full Metal said with an edge to his voice.

"Grams got me dressed and picked me up. They took me back to their place and within a week we were on a plane coming here. They were already planning on moving here with an aid camp. Grams was a retired nurse and Gramps was a retired university professor. They wanted to spend their retirement doing some good in the world. Within a week they had gotten me a passport, birth certificate, I had a duffle bag with clothes and another with some toys, books and coloring. From that moment I became their grandson."

"Ash never wondered where you were?" Ray asked.

"Nope. I was never reported missing. When I was seven a seal team came through here and they just happened to notice my last name and figured out Ash was my father. He showed up about a month later and demanded that they tell people he was allowing them to raise me while he was off fighting for this country. He didn't care about me, just his image and what it would do to his reputation. They agreed as long as he never came back. He threatened them with kidnapping charges if I ever came back to the states before I was legally an adult. They didn't care what he had to say. To them I was their grandson and he was nothing but a piece of shit."

"They sound like they were great people." Derek said warmly.

Clay couldn't help the warm smile that touched his lips. "They were amazing. Gramps, he was really smart. He taught math and five languages at the University. Within a week of being here he had me talking and writing. He worked with me everyday doing different things that would help me grow and learn. He taught me my first four languages all before I was twelve. Grams used to come home from work and we would have some type of experiment going on. There would be math equations all over the place. She used to just shake her head and give us this big smile. Then she would look at me and tell me that I was far too clean for a young boy. To go outside and play and not come back until I was thoroughly filthy and my belly hurt from laughing. She was a firm believer that a scraped knee could be healed with a kiss and a hug. Even though we were always at war, they never made it feel like I was in a war zone. They made it feel like a home."

"Havoc to Bravo One." Blackburn's voice broke out in the room.

"Bravo One." Jason said, speaking for the first time since Clay told them he grew up here. His voice was thick with emotions and he was doing everything he could to keep them in check.

"Did you meet up with Bravo Six?"

"We got him ya. We'll be heading back in a minute."

"Copy Bravo One."

Jason looked over at Clay and he could see the raw pain in his eyes. He wished with everything in him that he could make that pain go away, but he couldn't. There weren't any words he could offer that would make Clay not feel hurt by being here. All he could do was be there for him through this.

"We gotta get going." Jason said.

"I know. I just need to say goodbye to them."

Jason gave a simple nod and Clay stood up with Jason right beside him. Clay headed out and they followed him to the backyard of the house. There was a boulder there with initials scratched into it. Clay went over and looked down at the boulder and they all knew that his grandparents were dead. They suspected it, but they kind of hoped they were still alive somewhere in the world.

"When we first got here, one of the first things Gramps did was make a hiding spot under the floorboards. Just big enough for me to hide in it if the rebels ever came for us, for me. That threat finally came when I was twelve in the middle of the night. The whole village was overrun. They were going from house to house taking any child that was old enough to fight. Gramps hid me away and told me to not come out no matter what. The rebels stormed in and started to demand that they tell them where I was. They knew there was an American that lived here. Gramps told them that they sent me back home with the threat from the war rising. They tore the whole place apart, but when they didn't find me I thought they would leave. Only they killed them. Decapitated them right there. I saw the whole thing from the slats in the floorboards. When it finally got quiet I came out and did the only thing I knew to do. I buried them and spent the next six years only going out when I had no other choice to. I stayed hidden until I was old enough to leave."

The others couldn't help but close their eyes or look down. They were shocked and devastated that Clay's childhood had been one horror after the next. Everyone, but Vic were all feeling his pain and they wished they could have been able to take it away. Clay bent down and placed his hand on the stone. Jason went over to him and bent down beside him, placing a supportive hand on Clay's shoulders.

"I promised them when I left that I would be someone they could be proud of. Someone that helped people just as much as they helped me. It's why I decided to become a Seal, to save other people from going through this." Clay ran his hand over the letters as he spoke again. "I hope I made you proud."

"You have. There's no way for them to not be proud of the man you have become." Jason said warmly.

Clay brought his hand up to his mouth and kissed his index and middle finger before bringing it back over to the initials. "Thank-you for everything."

Jason did the same as he spoke. "Thank-you for saving my son. I owe you everything."

Vic was shocked. He had never heard Jason ever refer to Clay as his son before. He looked around, but he was the only one that was shocked by this. The others acted as if this was completely normal. It was insane. Jason was supposed to be his commanding officer, but he couldn't be if he wasn't objective with him. If he looked at Clay as a son and if Clay looked at him as a father, then that chain of command was compromised, broken. Jason couldn't properly hold Clay accountable for his actions, which meant one of them had to go. They would never remove Jason with his ranking, so that would mean Clay would have to be placed on another team. Vic was doing everything he could to keep his face straight. This was perfect. He could get Clay removed from the team and placed somewhere else. With Clay gone he could start to shine and truly show just what he was capable of. Hell, he could even start taking some language courses so he could be even more valuable to them.

Both Jason and Clay stood up and Jason pulled Clay in for a hug. Clay easily wrapped his arms around Jason and allowed the comfort. Today had been hard and he still wasn't feeling too great. All he wanted at that moment was to feel safe and loved, something Jason always managed to make him feel. After a moment Clay pulled back and Jason wiped the few tears that escaped from Clay's eyes off his cheeks.

"We should get going." Clay said.

Jason gave a nod and they all headed back inside. Clay picked up the duffle bag he brought in so it wouldn't be out in the heat. They headed out as Sonny spoke.

"What's in the bag?"

"A smile." Clay said, as he walked away from the vehicles towards where the children were playing.

They guys all followed him as Clay spoke and bent down. The kids all came running over to them and Clay spoke in english this time.

"I may have stolen all of our chocolate and candy off both planes."

"Oh man Franklin is gonna be pissy the whole way home." Derek complained.

"It's worth it." Clay said, before he spoke to the kids in their language.

He opened the bag and the guys could instantly see the huge smiles on their faces. Together all of the guys passed out the chocolate and candy to the kids and when the bag was empty the kids ran off with smiles that would be there for days after this.

"They sure do love chocolate." Sonny said.

"They don't ever get it. Sugar to them is like finding gold to most people. They'll savor it, only eating a small piece every day until it's gone. One chocolate bar could last them a month if they are careful. When I got to the States, the first thing I did was buy a chocolate bar. I had never had one before, the aid camp never had anything like that. It was the best thing I had ever tasted. Still to this day it has the power to make me not feel so down on the really bad days. And ice cream, ice cream is amazing. I ate my way through many pints when I was recovering from my leg." Clay said with a small smirk.

"Seeing their smiling faces will be worth dealing with Franklin's bitching." Full Metal said warmly.

"Let's get you out of here. Your body needs rest, you're still recovering." Trent said to Clay.

Clay gave a nod and he had to agree his body was hurting. He couldn't wait until he could lay down and try to relax. They all filed into the vehicles, dividing up more so they could bring the one back that Clay drove. With everyone loaded up they all made their way back to the planes so they could get out of here. Clay managed to keep his eyes open on the drive back, but when they pulled in they could all tell he was exhausted. They all loaded up the vehicles on the right plane before they went their separate ways so they could get ready for take off. With Bravo back on their plane Blackburn took in their appearance and noticed that they weren't angry, so whatever reason Clay had for going off was obviously ok with them.

"Get ready for take off boys. We're wheels up in fifteen." Blackburn said.

"Clay, you need to be on the cot again." Trent said, and Clay just gave a nod.

They all got to work on removing their gear and getting set for take off. Clay went over to the cot with a book he was currently reading and got under the covers. He was still cold so he was happy to use the two blankets that were on the bed. Once take off was completed everyone headed off to bed pretty quickly. They had already completed their mission plus they helped Alpha with theirs. They were all exhausted and looking for some sleep. Clay on the other hand needed to get his mind to shut off for a little while first before he would be able to sleep. He had been reading a book recently and he decided he would try and read some before he would sleep. He had just gotten into it when Jason came over and sat down on the cot.

"You are supposed to be sleeping." He said, as he gently removed the open book from Clay's hands.

Clay didn't bother with sitting up, he was too sore to even try and he knew Jason wouldn't care if he was laying down.

"So are you."

"I was on my way to it when I saw you reading. This book is huge, what the hell is it?" He asked with a smile, quickly noticing that it was written in French.

"À la recherche du temps perdu by Marcel Proust. It translates to In Search of Lost Time. It's big because it's all of the volumes put together. It's over two million words and one of the largest novels ever published. It was originally published back in 1913 and more recently it was republished with all of the volumes together. It's a good book, so far. I'm only through part of the first volume."

Jason gave Clay a warm smile. He was not at all surprised that Clay would be reading something like this. He was always reading and it seemed like the books got bigger and bigger each time. Clay never went anywhere without a book with him.

"You're supposed to be sleeping. Your body needs rest."

"I know and I will. I just needed to quiet my head a little bit first. Reading does that."

"You kinda got thrown down memory lane today. If you ever need to talk, you know I'm always there for you."

"I know. It's hard to talk about, because so many good memories are wrapped up with all these bad ones. They were my saviors though. They taught me that the best things in this world are things you can't ever see or touch. Even after all of these years there are times when I forget that they're gone. Times when I want to call them and tell them my good news or just to hear their voice again."

Jason gave a nod of understanding. "I've been there. My dad, he passed away about ten years ago now. Some days I go to call him and have to stop myself. I've lost a lot of people while I've been in the Navy, but losing my dad was one of the harder ones. One of the ones that still doesn't feel real. I think there are losses in life that will always stay with you. They sound like they were amazing and exactly what you needed growing up."

"They were perfect. Gramps told me early on that the world was made for people to wonder and question. That there was no such thing as a bad question, only curious ones. He never got annoyed when I would ask him questions all day long and if he didn't know the answer, we would find it together. He gave my mind the fuel it was starving for. Same as Grams."

"I learnt you were smart pretty early on. I knew you had a high IQ, but is that all there is to it?" Jason asked gently.

"What do you mean?" Clay asked, confused.

"I don't want you to take this the wrong way. But some people with higher IQs have a mental disorder. I'm just wondering if you were born smart or if you were born with a disorder that your IQ is a part of. And I don't mean that in a bad way. It's just sometimes you'll do something and I wonder if there is another reason for it. Like you on the occasion having a harder time being in a loud place or group. Sometimes you'll kinda distance yourself from us or you'll go into your head with a conversation going on around you. It doesn't matter to me either way, I was just wondering."

"When I got back to the States I immediately went to an adult learning spot that day and wrote my GED. I knew I would ace it, which I did. I then went the following day down to the Navy recruitment center and signed up for boot camp. The next bus didn't leave for a couple of days and I didn't have anywhere to go so I stayed on the street. That night Brian found me, offered to buy me something to eat, but I told him I was just waiting for the next bus to ship out to boot camp. Turned out so was he. He offered me his couch to crash on, but I didn't really trust people so I turned him down. Two days later we were on the bus together to boot camp, we even got paired up as roommates. Brian was really good with people. He loved them and he was very social, but I was not. I didn't get social interactions, I never really had any, especially in the last six years. I also asked questions and the instructors thought I was questioning them. I got into a lot of fights that first month. It got so bad that the instructors were talking about kicking me out. Brian spoke up and actually asked them to give me a psychological test. They agreed, mostly because I think they were hoping it would prove them right, that something was wrong with me and they could kick me out. It came back that I hit the spectrum."

"High end autism." Jason said with understanding and everything was making sense now.

"I didn't hit all of the markers, but I hit enough of them for the shrink to see it. High IQ and social problems were pretty obvious, but when she found out I didn't talk until I was five and had some other delays she was confident that was why. I'm sure the heroin addiction added to some of those delays, but it was pretty common for children on the spectrum. She said if you looked at it like it was a straight line, I was closer to the end of the line rather than further down. So I had it, but I wasn't so far on the spectrum, even for the high end, that I couldn't adapt and blend in."

"It's not in your file though." Jason knew that for a fact, because if it was Clay wouldn't be here. He would have been stuck in some office.

"No the instructors agreed that because it was just kissing the spectrum that they wouldn't have it recorded. I was only a month in but they knew I was skilled. They did tell me that it was my only warning. That I had to get it sorted out and figure out how to be normal. Brian vouched for me, said he would teach me the social aspects of it. After I knew I had it, I then worked my ass off on trying to figure it all out. Brian helped me through the majority of it and I was able to adapt and learn. We got so close that by the end of boot camp, we were recommended for Buds. We got through that and then we went on Team 3 together. People just knew if you wanted one of us you got the other. If it hadn't been for Brian, I don't know where I would have ended up."

"He was a good man. I'm sorry you lost him. I'm sorry I never got to know him. You being on the spectrum makes sense. It's why sometimes you go off on your own, you need to."

"In Africa I never had a problem with it, but when I got to the States, everything was so loud. It got overwhelming, like my mind was being attacked by all of my senses. It got so bad at times it felt like I couldn't breathe. It's not like that now, but every now and then my mind gets overloaded and I need to just shut it down for a little while. Reading always works. When I read it's like the world disappears and it's just me and the book. There is nothing else but whatever world I'm reading about. It makes all of the noise stop and I can keep going. It used to be a lot worse, shit you think I'm bad now, you have no idea what Brian had to put up with. I could barely have a normal conversation with someone. Now I've figured it out, at least I hope I have."

"You have. You do really well. Sometimes you ask questions around the wrong people, but I can normally catch you before you do it. Now that I know that you need that quiet at times I'll stop hounding you about it. I'll let you have the quiet time that you need and I'll leave you alone with your books. I didn't know I was hindering you in that sense."

"You don't. Talking with you helps, especially when I'm confused about something. Being around you helps make things quiet."

"Good, I'm glad I can help you. The last thing I want is you suffering in any way and I can't help you with it."

"Are you going to tell the guys?" Clay asked, slightly worried.

"You know they wouldn't care. You're their brother, they love you."

"No, I know that. It doesn't bother me if they knew. I just don't want Vic knowing."

"You think he would have a problem with it?"

"Don't know. I just don't trust him, not yet anyways."

"I know he's the new guy and it can be weird for you. You're no longer the rookie, but now you are just one of the guys." Jason started, but Clay cut him off.

"That's not it at all. I'm not worried about my position in the team. I know where I belong and it's not like I don't have a specialty. Whether I'm the rookie or not doesn't change anything. There's just something about him that makes me not trust him right off the cuff like you guys have."

"What kind of something?" Jason asked, now slightly concerned that they all have missed something.

"It's hard to explain. People all have a feel to them. You and the guys, you feel safe, always have. But Vic, he feels like Ash."

"Ok, what does that feel like?"

Jason had known that some people were more attuned to the world. Alana was like that. She could tell by how someone felt that they weren't a good person. Emma has that in her too, it was an ingrained instinct that some people were blessed with. Jason didn't really think too deeply on it, but he grew to trust it with Alana. With Clay being so smart and gifted it would make sense that people would have a different feeling to him. His instincts would be different, something that had been proven over the past three years.

"It's hard to explain. You know that feeling you get when you look into a cave or a tunnel and all you can see is pitch black, but you know you have to go in anyways?" Clay tried.

"Ya, it's this uneasy, slight fear feeling in the pit of your stomach. You don't know what is in it or what will happen." Jason answered.

"That's how he feels like. Like I'm staring down into the darkness and I don't know if he's going to come out with a flashlight or a knife. I'm sure he's a good person, he just feels like Ash and it's making it harder for me to trust him. I won't let it affect the way I operate with him, I swear."

"I'm not worried about you operating. You always do what you're supposed to do, what you're expected to do. If it takes you more time to trust him, that's ok. He seems solid to me and Ray is confident with him. I know he's had a hard life, ran away at fourteen to escape his abusive father. You might just be feeling his past on him maybe."

Jason was having a hard time seeing Vic as anything more than just a normal guy. He didn't come across as someone that could be dangerous to his team. With that said, he would be keeping an eye on things and making sure that Clay and Vic weren't alone together. Jason was a firm believer in trusting your instincts and Clay's were screaming at him that something was wrong with Vic. Jason wasn't going to ignore that for anything in this world.

"Probably. I trust you guys and you both say he's a good fit. I'm sure he'll prove to be. I just need more time to get there."

"Take all the time you need. Trust isn't built in a day, it's something that you have to work on. Thankfully, in our line of work trust can be built pretty strong with being in war zones. A few more missions together and you'll see he's solid."

Clay gave a nod and Jason knew they needed to get some sleep. He patted Clay's thigh as he spoke. "You can read, but don't stay up too late. Your body needs sleep to recover from the hypothermia still."

"I will, I promise." Clay said with a warm smile.

"Goodnight kid." Jason said, as he handed Clay his book back.

"Night Jace."

Jason stood up and started to walk away when Clay's voice stopped him. "Oh and thank-you for today."

"You don't ever have to thank me for that. It's what family does." Jason said with a warm smile, one Clay returned.

Jason headed off to his hammock and Clay opened his book. He already felt better after talking with Jason, but he just wanted to finish this chapter before getting some sleep. He had no idea what the future was going to hold, but he felt ready for it with Jason in his corner.


	2. Chapter 2

It was a few days later when Bravo was being spun up once again. Everyone, minus Clay and Vic were already in the war room ready and waiting for the others to arrive. It was still early, close to five in the morning, so it wasn't surprising that Clay and Vic weren't here yet. Jason figured while they were both gone, now was the perfect time to speak to the others about what he had learned about Clay.

"Real quick before Vic and Clay get here. I discovered some news about Clay on the flight home." Jason started.

"Discovered what?" Sonny asked.

"I caught him reading when he was supposed to be sleeping. That got us onto a conversation about his IQ. Turns out when he was in boot camp he was roommates with Brian, but he had a lot of social problems. He got into a lot of fights and didn't do well with the social aspect. The instructors were talking about kicking him out a month into it. Brian got them to agree to doing a psychological eval on Clay. That came back that Clay was kissing the spectrum."

"What spectrum?" Sonny asked.

"Autism spectrum. He would be on the high end half." Trent answered.

"What does kissing it mean?" Full Metal asked.

"Clay said he had enough markers to indicate that he had it, but not enough to put him that far down the line." Jason answered.

"It would be a mild case. It could explain why he didn't talk before the age of five. His social skills are good now though." Trent said.

"He said Brian helped him through it, that if it hadn't been for Brian he would have been thrown out of boot camp. He still has a few problems, but nothing socially." Jason said.

"What type of problems?" Blackburn asked.

Blackburn, Davis and Mandy had been briefed on where Clay had gone a few days ago and why. They all were shocked at what they had heard and discovered about Clay's past.

"It's nothing big or anything that will affect the way he does his job. Those moments where Clay goes off on his own to read or he doesn't come out to the bar is because his mind needs the break. His mind can get overwhelmed, so reading helps to quiet his mind and allows him to reset." Jason explained.

"That's common with people who are on the spectrum. For Clay loud noises and flashing lights can be hard at times when his mind is already tired, so a bar is not a place he could handle being in. Reading would allow his mind to focus on something else, it would be an escape to him." Trent said.

"That's basically what Clay said. Apparently when he first got to the States he got so overwhelmed at times he would have a panic attack almost. He said it felt like he couldn't breathe. He doesn't get that way now, but it's something that you all should know about. We've all joked or given him a hard time about staying at home or reading after a mission that needs to end. We can't keep doing that to him." Jason said.

"Ya that needs to stop and we will. This isn't in his file I'm guessing." Ray said.

"No, because it was mild and because he was skilled the instructors at boot camp kept it out of it. He wouldn't be allowed to be an active field operative if the Upper Brass knew. If they found out now, it probably wouldn't be a big deal with his years of service, still this stays in house. And Clay didn't want Vic to know."

"Why doesn't he want Vic to know?" Ray asked.

"It takes him a while to trust people. He's not there yet with Vic."

"He feeling less special with the new guy on the team?" Sonny asked.

"No, Clay knows his position within the team, that's not it. Clay said Vic feels like Ash and that is giving him some hesitation on his part."

"What does that mean?" Full Metal asked confused.

"He feels?" Mandy asked, confused as well.

"Some people have deep instincts. It's the same instincts you have when you walk by a dark alley and there is a man standing there. Those instincts tell you he's not safe to be around. A lot of people have the instincts that people have an energy in a sense about them. It causes those feelings that you associate that person with. Niama is a firm believer of it." Ray explained.

"So Vic feels like Ash, what does Ash feel like?" Brock asked.

"He said it's like staring into the opening of a cave that is pitch black. You have no idea what is going to come out, it's just darkness."

"Well that's not a quality you want in a parent." Davis said.

"So what Vic can't be trusted?" Sonny asked.

"He can be trusted. Vic is a good young man. Clay is probably just feeling Vic's past and the distance between them. Vic is trying to get closer to Clay and get to know him better, but Clay is still a little standoffish. They just need to get used to each other." Ray said.

"It's just going to take Clay a bit longer to build that trust with Vic. For now we'll keep an eye on it and make sure it doesn't become a problem." Jason said.

The door to the room opened and Vic walked in with a coffee. He gave them all a warm smile and noticed that Clay wasn't here.

"Sorry I'm late."

"It's fine we're still waiting on the kid." Jason said.

Vic went over and sat down where he normally did as he spoke. "Is he late for a reason?"

"He lives further away than us and he could have been on his way back from D.C when he got the call. If he's not here in five minutes we'll start." Jason answered.

"He's allowed to be in D.C when we could be spun up? It's like a three hour drive." Vic said, surprised that they would let Clay go that far away all the time.

"He's there with his girlfriend doing different events. The Upper Brass likes it and the funding he has been able to secure and generate. It's a new era for the military where they are embracing soldiers that are smart with outside of the box thinking. Clay plays well within that category, but he is also able to stay within the political box. Captain Lindell has approved it." Blackburn explained.

Vic couldn't believe that Clay was allowed to basically do whatever he wanted. It also would appear that their Captain was in support of Clay, which meant he would need to find someone who hated Clay or his father to get them on his side. Before anymore could be said the door opened and Derek walked in.

"Sorry to interrupt Sir." Derek said.

"It's fine, what do you need?" Blackburn asked.

"I wanted to let you know, I brought Clay in, he's with the Doc. He's pretty sick."

"You brought him in?" Sonny asked, confused.

"Sick how?" Trent asked, already standing up to leave.

"Doc said it's pneumonia, and it's pretty bad. The Doc was talking about a chest tube and he's got an oxygen mask on. I was on my way back in when I heard him coughing at his place. It sounded bad so I let myself in. He was having a hard time breathing, I listened to his lungs, they were congested." Derek answered.

Trent headed out with a nod of thanks and the others all got up. Jason went over and placed his hand on Derek's shoulder on his way out as he spoke. "Thanks for bringing him in."

"No problem." Derek said.

"Keep me updated." Blackburn said.

"This mission relies on Clay's language skills, let me know when he can be cleared to go. This is time sensitive." Mandy said.

"We'll keep you posted, but if it's bad it'll be a week or more." Ray said, as he headed out.

They all made their way down to the infirmary, including Derek. Derek wanted to make sure Clay was ok before he headed home to get some sleep. They arrived at the infirmary to see that Trent was already there with the Doc and getting some answers.

"What's going on Doc?" Jason asked.

"As I was telling Trent, Spenser has a very severe case of pneumonia. It looks like it came on very quickly and from what I've been told he had hypothermia a few days ago. It would have caused his body to develop it rapidly." Dr. Moore explained.

"Both of his lungs have fluid build up, roughly a third in each. He's choking on it and coughing liquid up. He needs to be sedated and have his lungs drained." Trent added.

"A third in each? How did it develop that fast?" Sonny asked, shocked.

"The hypothermia compromised his immune system. It allowed his body to develop the pneumonia this fast. He is being sedated now and I will insert two chest tubes, one on each side, to drain the fluid from his lungs. He is also being given an IV for a powerful antibiotic to start getting the pneumonia under control." Dr. Moore answered.

"Will he be ok?" Ray asked.

"The next twenty-four hours will tell. If we can get control of the pneumonia and stop the fluid building up so fast then he'll be ok. We'll keep him sedated for the next twenty-four hours to ensure that we've finally gotten ahead of it. If he is improving then I will remove the sedation and let him wake up. Once the antibiotics get going through his system he should recover fairly quickly, within two weeks. He'll still have a fever throughout the two weeks and he will have the chills, a cough, and tightness and pain within his chest. All goes right he can be back to duty in a month." Dr. Moore answered.

"Can we see him?" Jason asked.

"One at a time yes, but after I get the chest tubes in."

"Thanks Doc." Trent said.

Dr. Moore walked away to tend to Clay while the others had no choice, but to stay behind and wait. Jason pulled out his phone to call Blackburn and update him. Whatever their mission was it would have to be delayed now if they couldn't get a Strap for it.

"Thanks Derek for looking out for the kid." Trent said.

"I'm just glad I was coming home and heard him. He didn't even hear his phone going off for you guys. I found him in bed trying to breathe."

"He's being looked after now. He'll be ok. Clay usually does really well with antibiotics." Ray said.

"He should bounce back pretty quick once he gets over the hump. We were lucky you found him. He could have been a lot worse by the time we went looking for him." Trent said.

"We were supposed to be going on an operation, what do we do now?" Vic asked.

"Well, that depends on what Jace is being told. We need Clay's language skills so depending on the type of mission it will either be put on hold until Clay can go or we'll go with a strap or another team will go. Just depends on the Op." Ray answered.

"Do you know what language?" Derek asked, trying to see if it would get passed on to them.

"No we didn't get into it. We were waiting on the kid." Ray answered.

Jason came over to them and he didn't look too happy.

"What's wrong Boss?" Sonny asked.

"Something is going on. Eric is on his way down here with Lindell."

"Well that can't be good." Derek said.

"Why would Lindell be coming down?" Brock asked.

"It has to have something to do with the Op we were about to go on. We'll see in a few minutes." Jason answered.

"I have a feeling this is going to be a mess." Ray said.

The others couldn't help but agree. They knew Clay was going to get sick from the hypothermia, but they had been hoping it would be a bad cold, not a bad case of pneumonia. Now they had to worry about Clay and this mission that required Clay's skills. They all hated it when Clay was being used by some Upper Brass because he spoke a language few did in the military. They knew Clay was used to it, but still it pissed them off at times because it normally put Clay in danger. Jason knew Clay loved to learn languages, but he was really hoping the kid was done with learning any other languages. The last thing they needed was getting sent into other areas because Clay could translate.

It was a few minutes later when Blackburn and Lindell walked into the infirmary. Blackburn nodded at them to follow him and they all headed into an empty room so they could speak privately without having to worry about someone overhearing them.

"Trent, what is the recovery process for Spenser?" Blackburn asked right away.

"It's not a straightforward process, it depends on how Clay heals." Trent started.

"Best case scenario." Lindell pressed.

"He's sedated for the next twenty-four hours. That is so he is asleep and not in pain from having two chest tubes inserted into his lungs. It's a simple procedure, but it is a painful one. A tube will be inserted from a cut into each side between his ribs. It will go into his lung and the fluid will drain out. If at the end of twenty-four hours there is still too much fluid they will keep him sedated until there is a minimal amount of fluid. Assuming the fluid is minimal at twenty-four hours, they will then remove the tubes and he will have to get roughly five stitches to each side to close the incisions. That's just the start though. He'll still be very sick and will have to take antibiotics to get rid of the pneumonia. He will also be in pain from the chest tubes for roughly three weeks. He will be very exhausted, not really hungry, he won't be able to do much physical activities for at least two weeks, could be up to a month afterwards while his lungs heal. He can't lift anything, he can't run or have a lot of weight on him. He'll also still be coughing up fluid until the pneumonia is gone and he will need to do breathing exercises to help repair the damage to his lungs. Realistically, even in the best case scenario he can't be in the field for at least a month until he is cleared medically."

"And that doesn't include any side effects of the antibiotics?" Ray asked.

"With Clay being allergic to phosphate he can't take a pill and antibiotics don't come in liquid gel form. He'll have to be on a liquid antibiotic like you used to get when you were a kid. It'll have to be kept cold, but it won't give him any side effects or make him sicker." Trent explained.

"So best case scenario is a month to be in active duty?" Blackburn confirmed.

"That's correct." Trent answered.

"We don't have that kind of time." Lindell said.

"What is going on Sir?" Jason asked.

"A situation has come up on the board of Afghanistan and Pakistan. A misunderstanding between the Outpost in Shakin and the Pakistani border Outpost has now placed us in a position of war. The General of the Pakistani Outpost has demanded to speak with a military personnel that speaks their language. Apparently the General at our Outpost has tried to reason with them, but he doesn't speak the language and has been using a Strap to translate. This was taken as a sign of disrespect, especially when the negotiations did not go well. Spenser is one of the few people within the military that speaks Urdu." Lindell explained.

"Ok, so we were to go in and help with negotiations?" Ray asked.

"The Op was to send Bravo in as security for Spenser to go into the Pakistani Outpost and negotiate an agreement with the General to prevent war from happening. As you know the United States cannot afford another war, especially with Pakistan. We have only been given a week to provide a negotiator before the lines of communication were cut off and war is declared." Blackburn explained.

"He can't go anywhere in a week. He'll still be on bed rest." Trent said.

"Why can't Bravo go in and we can use a phone App for the translations. We used to do it all the time when we didn't have a Strap." Vic offered.

"It's not that simple. The Pakistani culture has to be taken into account. They want someone that can speak their language and understand their culture. We need someone that can go in and do that, but also understands the political aspect of this situation and can manipulate the situation to work in our favor should it be going the other way. I need someone who can play chess while they are playing checkers. That is Spenser. He's the only one we have and if we can't get him to that meeting within the next seven days, we will be going to war." Lindell said.

"Trent, I know he isn't going to be cleared medically for active duty, but given the situation we don't have a choice. What can we do to get Spenser in and out with minimal risk to his health?" Blackburn asked.

Trent let out a sigh and they all could tell he was not impressed with this. He also knew that there was no way out of it. They were going to have Clay there regardless of what anyone said. They could be sympathetic, but at the end of the day this was war they were talking about and it sounded like Clay was the only option they had to prevent it.

"He couldn't be on a cot, he would need a hospital bed on the plane so he can be propped up to help with his breathing. He'll need to be on oxygen as well. If we could have the pilot fly lower than the standard procedure that will also help with the difference in air pressure. He won't be able to wear our normal tactical gear, it'll be too heavy for him. He won't be able to walk far so we'll need to be able to drive as close as possible to the meeting location. He'll also have a fever, assuming I can't get it down, so he's going to be cold and tired, he's going to feel like complete crap. Outside of that, there isn't anything we can do; he just needs time and rest."

"Can you buy any time? Explain that the negotiator is sick and will be there in two weeks?" Jason asked, the very last thing he wanted was to be sending Clay into a hostile area while he was this sick.

"I can try, but I highly doubt it. They didn't want to wait a week and we were able to get them to agree to it due to the distance and logistics it would take to bring someone in. Realistically, we have a week to get there and get these negations completed. Bravo will need to be wheels up in three days." Lindell answered.

It was a fact and no one was happy about it, including Lindell, but if they wanted to prevent another war from starting they would have no choice but to use Clay.

"Can Alpha help in any way?" Derek asked.

"No we won't need to send two teams." Lindell answered.

"Keep me updated on Spenser's condition and hopefully he recovers well from this and we can be wheels up in three days." Blackburn said.

They gave a nod and they all knew this meeting was over. None of them were happy about this, but they also knew they didn't have a choice. In three days, Clay would be on that plane, whether he was ready or not. Blackburn and Lindell headed off to handle things on their end and the others all looked at Trent to see how bad this was going to be. Trent was pissed, if you didn't know him you wouldn't see it, but the others knew him well enough to tell he was pissed by this. Everyone but Vic.

"Is he going to be able to translate with being sick? It took him hours to translate that letter, I can't imagine the Pakistani General is going to be that patient with him." Vic said.

"Clay's ability to translate is the least of my concerns right now." Trent said, with just a hint of edge to his voice.

"It should be. It took him over two hours to translate a letter with seven sentences. No general, especially a Pakistani one, is going to sit there for hours while he tries to have a conversation. We need a plan if he can't do this." Vic pointed out.

"There is no can't do this. He doesn't have a choice, which means we don't have a choice. All we can do is keep him safe and treat this like a high priority bodyguard operation. We keep him safe no matter what, we get him in and out. Trent, get with Davis and start getting what we need for the plane for him." Jason started.

"Got it Boss." Trent easily said.

"Ray, get with Mandy and everyone to gather the intel that we have. We're gonna need to know everything that has been said between our side and theirs. The kid is gonna need it. Once we have it, we all need to go over it so we can help Clay out. The fever is gonna make it harder for him to remember things, he's counting on us to help his mind out this time around." Jason finished.

"I'll grab the intel." Ray said.

"What do the rest of us do?" Vic asked.

"I don't know Vic, you have a brother with multiple tubes coming out of him. What do you think you should be doing?" Sonny asked, not impressed at all.

"I might for the mission. Should we be trying to gather more intel, finding a Strap to bring along just in case Clay can't get through it? Should we be calling his dad and letting him know that his son is in the infirmary?" Vic said. He knew that Jason considered Clay his son, but he did have an actual father with rights. Vic wanted to remind them of that.

"His dad already knows." Sonny pointed out.

"Oh, they called Ash already?" Vic asked, innocently.

"No, he don't need to know anything about the kid. He'll only cause problems and the kid has enough problems to worry about." Sonny said.

"If you want something to do, go check the gear and make sure Clay's is ready. He didn't have the chance to do it when we got back with him being sick." Jason ordered.

"Sure, I'll go do that then." Vic said with a nod and he headed out.

He was really getting sick of this. It was always about Clay, the golden child. He was sick of being treated like some grunt that was just supposed to do what he's told. Clay was younger than him, had less experience and yet Vic was supposed to do what he says. Clay was not a team guy, sure he put up a good front, but Vic knew he would be fleeing the team once the right opportunity came. He was wrong for Bravo and shouldn't be leading them. Vic deserved that spot and he was going to make sure he got it. He was going to take Clay out, not by killing him, no he was going to make it Clay's decision to leave Bravo and the military. He was going to ruin him and make everyone on Bravo turn their backs on him.

Vic headed into the supply area. Within the area they had everything outside of ammo and weapons. In this room you could find radios, electronics, batteries and a bunch of other little things that you could need for operations. What Vic was looking for, the burner phones they kept here. You never know when you might need a burner phone on an operation. Sometimes they would need to do some light undercover work when gathering intel and a burner phone was easier than having a radio on them. Vic grabbed one and placed it into his jacket pocket before heading out. That was part one of his plan, now he just needed to grab Ash's phone number so he could reach out. From what he knew about Ash Spenser, the man loved to get attention, no matter how it came about. If he was going to get Clay out of Bravo's life he was going to need someone that would be able to help him make it happen.

Jason moved around in the most uncomfortable chair he had ever been in. It was one of the problems with being stuck in the infirmary, the evil plastic chairs. Jason had been here since yesterday when they were finally allowed to be in the room with Clay. It was always hard to see one of his men in the infirmary or hospital, it was even harder to see Clay laying there with a tube coming from each side of his chest. It wouldn't have been so bad if he knew that Clay would be able to have the time off that his body needed to heal, but he would have to be leaving the infirmary in two days to get on a plane and travel over twenty hours to a potential warzone.

Jason had first loved that Clay spoke so many languages, it was perfect for them to not have to have a Strap all the time. Now, he hated that he knew these languages. He had no idea if Clay was interested in learning more, but he was putting his foot down on it. There will be no more learning new languages that the Upper Brass could use Clay for. If he wanted to learn a new language it would be outside of the military and kept that way.

Jason rubbed his hands over his face and looked over at the monitors. The doctor had been happy with the amount of fluid that had been drained from Clay's lungs. The tubes had been removed and he now had five stitches to each side, but he still needed the oxygen mask on to keep his oxygen levels in a safe spot. The back of the bed was raised slightly to help relieve the pressure on his lungs and to prevent the fluid from building again. Jason wasn't sure what everything on the monitors meant, but he could see that his heart rate was good, his pulse was normal and he had a fever of a hundred and two. The doctor had removed the sedation from Clay late last night and he had been told that Clay's body will wake up sometime this morning. He was advised that he wouldn't be in good shape and probably wouldn't be awake for long. Still, Jason wanted to be here for when he did wake up. There was nothing worse than waking up sick in the infirmary and not remembering what happened.

A small groan from the bed caused Jason's attention to snap to Clay's face. Jason stood up and went over to the bed and sat down on the edge of it, being careful to not sit too close to Clay and cause him any pain. Clay slowly blinked his eyes open, but he was having a hard time keeping them open. His whole body was exhausted and he was feeling sore all over his chest and his back.

"Hey Clay, open your eyes for me kiddo." Jason said gently as he placed his hand on Clay's head.

Clay gave a groan, but he knew that voice and he knew that touch. He forced his eyes open and had to blink a few times to remove the blurriness from them. His whole body felt like crap and he had no idea what had happened, but he felt safe knowing that Jason was here. Clay could tell that he wasn't in the hospital, but the infirmary at the base. He could also tell that something was on his face. He moved his hand to the mask, but his movements were slow and sluggish. Jason could tell what Clay was trying to do and he moved his hand to the oxygen mask and pulled it down slightly so Clay could talk.

"Happened?" Clay's voice was weak and sluggish, but he was at least awake and that was good enough for Jason.

"Derek heard you coughing and went to check on you. He found you having a hard time breathing and he brought you in. That was a day ago, you have a bad case of pneumonia and the doc had to put a tube into both sides of your chest to drain the fluid. You're gonna be ok, you just need rest and you'll be sore on your sides, you have some stitches from the tubes."

Clay lightly tapped his chest as he spoke. "Hurts."

"It's ok, Trent said it would. The best thing you can do right now is just sleep."

Clay gave a small nod as his eyes were already starting to close. Jason could hear the deep wheeze to Clay's breathing and he placed the oxygen mask back over Clay's mouth and nose. He then ran his hand through Clay's hair as he fell back asleep. He looked up when he heard the door open and he saw Ray walk in.

"How is he?" Ray whispered, not wanting to wake Clay up.

"He's pretty sick and in pain." Jason whispered back.

"Trent said he would be. He's worried Jace; said it was the worst case of pneumonia he's seen. The kid's body was still recovering from hypothermia when the pneumonia hit him, and it hit him hard. His immune system was badly compromised and Trent's worried that he could catch something else."

"He's really sick Ray. I know we don't have a choice, but I don't know if he can do this. We're not asking him to sit and translate, we're asking him to go into a war zone and have a political mission that could result in war. He's not going to be able to wear the protection he needs to keep him safe. He's not going to be able to fight if he needs it. I don't even know if he'll be able to walk and stay awake at this point. We're wheels up in thirty-six hours."

"I know, I don't know if he can do this, but we don't have a choice Jace. We got orders and Lindell isn't about to change them. All we can do is help him and protect him down there. I just hope for the kid's sake that this doesn't end in war. It won't be his fault, but he will feel like it is and that will haunt him."

"He won't be able to handle that. He won't be able to handle knowing we are at war and he wasn't able to stop it. We need this mission to be successful. I just don't know if he can physically do it."

"We'll get him through it, we always do. We've divided up the intel and we're all going through it so we can let him know when we land what has been happening and what he needs to know. With any luck this General doesn't want to go to war anymore than we do."

"I hope so. I'd just feel better if he could go in there with his armor on, but Trent said it would be too heavy for his lungs to handle. He's going to be in enemy territory without a vest on and we won't know what they are saying. It could be too late before Clay can translate it back to us, there's too many variables. We don't even know how many are in that outpost."

"I don't know, I don't have intel on that." Ray said, he wasn't happy about any of this either.

"You know what, get Lisa to have an ISR do a fly by. I want a rough idea of numbers before we go in. I'm not going down there if there are too many of them without another team. I know Lindell said we don't need another team, but with Clay down, that leaves six of us and I'm not walking in there if we are going to be outnumbered."

"I agree. I'll get Lisa on it and let Blackburn know. You gonna stay here the whole time?"

"I'm fine here."

"You need to sleep Jace."

"I can sleep right here. Did last night." Jason said with a stubborn tone.

Ray could tell just by Jason's tone that he wasn't going anywhere until Clay did. There was no point in arguing with him, Ray could understand how he was feeling. Ray just gave a nod before he spoke. "I'll see if I can get you something more comfortable to sleep on."

Jason just gave a nod and Ray headed out. He was going to make sure that he got a cot for Jason to sleep on and get Lisa started on gathering more solid intel on the outpost. He agreed with Jason, they needed to know how many people were in that outpost and just what they were going up against. They only have thirty-six hours before they would be loading Clay up on a plane and heading over there.

It was finally time to move Clay onto the plane. The past thirty-six hours had been intense for the whole team. Lisa had been able to get ISR up and over the outpost and she saw that there were an average of thirty tangos at the outpost at all times, all of them were armed. That led to a conversation with Blackburn, Jason and Lindell about sending in only one team. Lindell had considered using troops from their own Outpost close to Pakistan, but he quickly changed his mind when he saw the state that Clay was still in. He wasn't going to risk Clay's life by hoping soldiers at an Outpost would be able to handle whatever could happen. Alpha was now going with them, it would also give them two medics with Derek. Blackburn would also be going in armed as well for an extra man, and he could help Clay with negotiations of Clay was stuck. His main role though was to stay with Clay and get him out should something go wrong.

They had all read different parts of the intel so they could relay that information to Clay once he was awake when they landed. Alpha team had already gone over the intel as well so they were fully caught up. Trent had everything set for Clay on the plane, he had extra of everything just in case Clay was in need of it or something happened to someone else. They were going to transport Clay from the infirmary onto a stretcher and then onto the plane where he would be on a hospital bed they borrowed. Trent would then give him a sedative to put him to sleep and get him hooked up with an oxygen mask to ensure he was breathing properly for the flight. The pilot was also going to fly lower to help with the air pressure difference. Once on the ground they were driving to the Pakastani Outpost to speak with the General there, they were going to drive right in and get as close as possible to eliminate Clay walking.

With everyone getting their gear set on the plane, Trent and Jason headed into the infirmary to grab Clay and help him move. Walking into Clay's room they saw that he was asleep, not that they expected anything less. Clay had been sleeping most of the past few days away. He hadn't really eaten anything and the only hydration he was getting was through the IV. Trent had said it was normal for him to not be hungry, but they would need to keep an eye on his water intake while they were out there. They would need to try and keep him in the shade as much as possible and drinking plenty of water. Before they went to wake him up, Trent went over to check the monitors to see how Clay was doing. He had been suffering from a fever this whole time and it was sticking between one hundred and two and one hundred and three. No amount of medication was working to bring it down. Trent had one bottle of medication for Clay's antibiotic to bring with them and he was hoping Clay's fever would break before they got back.

Trent checked Clay's stitches on each side to make sure they were healing well, he was pleased to see that they were. Trent did a quick listen to Clay's lungs and he could hear the wheeze and congestion in them. The pneumonia still had a strong hold on him and hopefully he would be alright until they arrived back.

"How is he?" Jason asked. He was worried with Clay being asleep for so long. He was barely awake anymore.

"Sick as shit. This is gonna be rough and it will knock him back at least a week." It was clear in Trent's voice that he was not happy about any of this. But he also knew there was nothing he could do or say that would change the outcome. Clay had to go and it was on him to make sure he was able to stand.

"He can have all the time he needs when we get back."

"Me or you?" Trent asked and Jason instantly knew what Trent was asking.

Jason walked over to the bed and Trent moved back, allowing Jason the space to wake Clay up. Jason had explained to Clay yesterday about having to go on an operation today, but he doubted Clay would even remember that conversation. He would need to tell him again after they landed. Jason placed his hand in Clay's hair as he spoke.

"Clay, I need you to wake up kid."

It took a few minutes of prodding, but Clay finally let out a moan as he started to wake up. He felt like complete crap and the very last thing he wanted to do was wake up, but the sound of Jason's voice told him he had to be awake. Clay's eyes blinked open and his sight was a little blurry so he blinked, and few times to try and clear it. He did not want to be wake right now, he wanted to curl up and just sleep. He was freezing and his whole body hurt, he wanted his own bed.

"Home?" Clay asked weakly, it being slightly muffled by the mask still firmly in place.

Jason hated that he would have to be the one to tell Clay that home was not where they were going. For now, he wasn't going to worry about it, Clay would be asleep within seconds again and he wouldn't remember any of this.

"Ya kiddo. We need to move you onto a stretcher so we can get you out of here." Jason lied, it would give Clay a little bit of hope for now.

Clay gave a small nod and Trent went to work on unhooking Clay from the different machines. He left the IV in with the antibiotic and fluid, it would help to finish them before they would need to switch to non IV. With Clay free of everything Trent removed Clay's oxygen and replaced it with his own portable oxygen tank and mask. With Clay set Trent gave a nod and him and Jason very carefully picked Clay up and moved him over to the stretcher. Clay gave a groan at the movement, but he didn't fight them on it. Once he was settled they headed out and before they even arrived at the plane Clay was back asleep. They wheeled him onto the plane and put him over against the hospital bed.

"He looks terrible." Sonny said, concerned.

"He feels terrible and thinks he's going home." Trent said.

"He's in for one hell of a shock when we land." Full Metal said.

Derek went over and helped Tret move Clay off from the stretcher and onto the bed. Jason pulled the stretcher away and turned to see Jack, a support guy, taking it. Jason gave him a small smile of thanks as he turned back around to Clay. Between Derek and Trent they got Clay onto the bed, strapped in for take off and got the IV and oxygen set up properly for him. The whole time Clay didn't wake up.

"Is it normal for him to be so tired? I mean he didn't even wake up." Franklin said.

"His body is very sick and rundown. He didn't get the chance to recover from the hypothermia and now his body is trying to fight the pneumonia. Sleep is the best thing for him right now." Trent answered as he got the sedation ready.

"You sedatin' him?" Sonny asked.

"It's best to keep Clay asleep for the flight." Derek answered.

"He'll wake up right around landing time." Trent added.

"If he's going to be asleep the whole time, how are we going to update him on the mission and the information?" Vic asked.

"We'll do it once he's awake and then we'll head out. We need his mind ready for it, sleep is the best thing for him." Ray answered.

"Ok, I know I'm new and don't know Clay as well as the rest of you. But he can barely stay awake, how the hell is he going to be able to sit down in the hot desert and negotiate not going to war? Is he really going to be able to stay awake?" Vic asked, because to him it seemed impossible right now.

"He won't be, that's why I have a special drug with me that will keep him awake for thirteen hours before it wears off. He'll still feel and look like shit, but he'll be able to stay awake and talk." Trent explained.

"Is that safe for him?" Jason asked, this was the first he was hearing about some drug.

"It is. It is an injection that I can give him, I have the right dosage so it won't keep him awake for forty hours like it is designed to do. It is a drug given to people who need to stay awake for testing on certain disorders. He'll be fine." Trent answered.

"Any side effects?" Sonny asked,

"No, but once the drug wears off he will be hitting a wall. Which means we only have thirteen hours from the time I give it to him to get him briefed, get him there, negotiate and back to the outpost to sleep. Once the drug wears off he won't be able to keep his eyes open or stand." Trent answered.

"It's a ten minute drive from the Pakistani outpost to the American. The airstrip is an hour from the American outpost." Blackburn said.

"Leaving us eleven hours and forty minutes to get him briefed, there and back." Full Metal said.

"Is that doable?" Jackson, Alpha's new rookie asked.

"Depends on how long the negotiations take." Derek answered.

"He good for take off?" Blackburn asked Trent.

"He's set."

"Get ready, I'll tell the pilot to take off." Blackburn said. They needed to get there so they could start preventing this war.

The others all headed off to get seated for take off.

"Cerb, stay with Clay." Brock said. The dog didn't need to be told twice. He ran over and hopped up on the bed and laid down right next to Clay, putting his head down on his chest.

Jason ran his hand through Clay's hair for a moment, to make sure that Clay was in fact asleep and ok before he moved to get ready. Jason was just hoping that everything on this mission went right and Clay would be back on his way home soon where he needed to be.

When they finally landed everyone was awake and ready to go, with the exception of Clay. They wanted to keep him sleeping for as long as possible. When they woke him up with the drug it would be when they were fully ready and Clay could just leave. Trent and Jason had already gotten him dressed and in his boots so they wouldn't have to have Clay try and do it once he was awake. With them being on a clock they needed to get Clay in and out before that time ran out.

"Ok, real quick before we get the kid up. Clay is on a political mission, the rest of us are on a protection mission. The only thing that matters is getting the kid to the meeting and back safely. He will not be able to be in any armor and he will have only a handgun with him. Anything else is too heavy on his breathing. We have eyes on him at all times, I don't care where he is or what he is doing, someone is with him. Derek and Trent have medical and one of them will be available at all times should Clay need it. Blackburn is going with us in the field, leaving Alpha's Commanding Officer Samuel in charge of HAVOC with Lisa and Mandy." Jason began.

"With this being a political based mission, rules of engagement are as follow. You do not fire your weapon unless you are fired upon. You do not pull your weapon unless one is pulled on you. We are going in to make peace and prevent a war, that is the objective. Now with that said, be vigilant and be prepared for anything. Like Jason said, our top priority is getting Clay back home safe." Blackburn added.

"I will be here to monitor everything and let you know of any changes that come up. Lindell is on standby and will be available no matter how long this takes. He's got his phone with him and will answer the call at any point should we need him. He has advised me that General White is not an easy man to deal with and he is notorious for not taking blame but rather passing it off to someone else. He also hates Ash and might not be too sympathetic to Clay's condition or position." Samuel said.

"Great, so we have to deal with an asshole of a General to go with all of this." Sonny grumbled.

"We might also have an issue with General White not being happy with having someone of Clay's ranking here to handle it. Typically this would be handled by someone with a General ranking or higher. It would normally be an Admiral with other Generals with him to handle the negotiations and a Strap would be used to translate. Clay is lower on the food chain and would normally not even be here for protection detail. But given that the Pakistani General wants someone that speaks the language and in a position to negotiate, Clay is the only person we have. We all understand that, chances are that White won't." Samuel added.

"But none of us outrank a General. Not even Lindell." Ray said.

"No, but Lindell does have Admiral Richards up in queue to use should we need someone who can outrank a General. Richards likes Clay, he's known him since boot camp. Clay even went to his son's wedding, he was a groomsman actually. He's ready to do whatever we need from him." Blackburn said.

"Damn, that's a powerful official to have in your backpocket." Jackson said, impressed.

"It works in our favor right now." Full Metal said.

"Let's hope we don't have to use him." Ray commented.

"Anyone have any questions before we wake the kid up?" Jason asked.

When no one said anything Trent went over to Clay and injected the drug into him. He had already removed the IV, but he had kept the oxygen mask on Clay as he was still going to need it. They would be bringing one with them so he could use it on the drive and just in case he needed it outside.

"How long before that kicks in?" Sonny asked.

"Within a minute. Remember he will be awake, talking and alert, but he's still going to feel like shit. He's not going to have any energy at all. This is only so he stays awake." Trent said.

"What's that drug called in case we need to know." Full Metal asked.

"Modafinil. Think of it like fancy liquid caffeine, it'll keep his brian going so it can't tell his body to go to sleep." Derek answered.

"But it won't give him the energy boost like caffeine." Ray stated with understanding.

"We got the coolers with ice packs and water ready to go?" Jason asked Lisa.

She was no longer in charge of their supplies, but it seemed to be part of her job that she still clung on to. She knew her boys the best and she knew to be prepared for everything. She was so intuned with them, she knew what they needed before they even asked for it.

"Everything is set. I even have some green jello in it just in case he wants something to eat. I put enough water in there for everyone and there is also a snack bag for you guys as well."

"I love you. When are you finally going to come to our team?" Derek said with a warm smile.

It was no secret that Bravo had lucked out on getting Lisa. She was amazing and one of the best in the navy, they all knew it. Bravo always ended up with the best in terms of people and support staff. With them being the number one team it was easy for them to get what they wanted, as long as they could rationalize it. Derek wasn't looking to steal the number one spot, but he was hoping to tie with them and hopefully be able to get his own little perks as well.

"You know I love you too, but my heart lives with Bravo. I'll give Chris some pointers though." Lisa said with a warm smile back.

A groan from Clay had everyone turning their attention back to him. Jason moved so he was closer to the bed as Clay blinked his eyes open. Trent moved back to allow Jason to handle telling Clay what was going on. Jason placed his hand gently on the left side of Clay's neck as he spoke.

"Hey kiddo, you with me?"

Clay gave a small nod and his eyes blinked close, but they opened almost instantly. The drug was officially in his system and the clock was starting. Trent and Derek hit the timer on their watch so they would have an accurate timeline. The others all took quick notice of what time it was so they could keep track roughly as well.

"I know you are tired and confused and don't feel well. You have double pneumonia and had to have two chest tubes inserted into your sides to drain the fluid. Your chest and sides will hurt from it. You still have a fever and you are going to feel really rundown. I need you to nod if you understand me." Jasn said in a calm and gentle voice.

Clay gave a small nod and Jason continued. "We are on the plane right now, in Afghanistan. A situation has come up between a general on our side and a general on the Pakistani side. The Pakistani general is looking to declare war against the US for what the American general had to say to him. The Pakistani general has demanded to speak with an American that can negotiate but also speak his language. That person is you. Nod if you understand."

Clay gave a nod, but Jason could see he had questions in his eyes. "You can ask all the questions you want, I just want to explain what is going to happen first. We are going to brief you on the situation and then head for the Pakistani Outpost for you to speak with the general there. Afterwards we will go to the US Outpost and speak to our general and come to a peace agreement. You are awake right now, but you are very sick. Trent had to give you a drug that will keep you awake and your mind alert, but you are going to still feel like shit. You also can't have any armor on as it would hinder your breathing. Your job is to get the peace agreement sorted. Our job is to protect you, so I need you to not fight us on anything. You need to do as we say so you are safe, especially in your state and without your vest and plate. Understand?"

Again Clay gave a nod and Jason continued. "Alpha is with us and Eric will be going in as well. We have everything that you need to do this and once this mission is over you are on medical leave until you are healthy again. Are you up for us briefing you?"

Clay gave another nod, not in any hurry to try and speak around the oxygen mask on his face. He had more questions, but he would wait until he heard what the guys had to tell him.

"Jase." Trent said, holding out a medicine cup with yellow liquid inside of it. Jason took it and spoke.

"This is your antibiotic, I need you to take this."

Jason removed the oxygen mask and handed Clay the small cup. Jason kept his hand on it though as Clay's grip was not that good just yet. Clay downed the medicine in one go and Trent took the cup back as Jason put the mask back on him. Lisa took the cup from Trent so she could rinse it out and store it for them. Jason half sat down on the side of the bed as everyone moved closer. Blackburn started.

"General White of the Afghani Outpost was trying to resolve a small issue that was had between a soldier on our side with a soldier on their side. Both soldiers are claiming the other crossed into their territory when they did not have clearance. We don't know which one is telling the truth. The point is, it should have been something small and simple to resolve, but apparently a comment from General White angered the Pakistani general, General Ahkim. Now Ahkim is looking to declare war against the US unless a peace treaty can be made."

Clay moved his hand up and everyone noticed how sluggish his movements were, to his oxygen mask. Jason beat him to it though and pulled it down for him.

"First time?" Clay asked, his voice weak and hoarse from now being used for the past few days.

"Not even close brother. According to what I read there have been multiple reports of problems between the two outposts. Both have their own side to the story, but basically it is like middle school bullshit. The one claims that people are on their side of the line, the other claims the same thing. The US Outpost says that the Pakistani Outpost will do mortar drills at all hours of the night to keep them awake. They then retaliate and do something back at them." Ray answered.

Trent handed Clay a water bottle as he spoke. "Small sips, it'll help with your throat."

Clay took it and with slow movements was able to get the bottle to his mouth and take a few sips. He had to admit the cold water on his throat felt amazing.

"It's like the Hatfields and Macoys. Only all the little shit is now exploding." Sonny commented.

"How long?" Clay asked, his voice sounding a little bit better.

"Till war is declared, roughly three days. For the problems between them, decades. It started off with the bad blood between the Afghani people and the Pakistani people. Now that has grown to the Americans since the Outpost was built." Blackburn answered.

"There's been a lot of little problems for the past couple of decades. It's all small time stuff, little annoyances just to piss the other off. Like a bad neighbor that you can't get rid of. It's been worse though since General White took over command of the Outpost, five years ago. According to the Pakistani reports of the incidents, General White has encouraged his men to provoke them on purpose with the hopes that they would attack and they could eliminate that Outpost. There has never been a physical attack though from either side." Trent added.

"How many men?" Clay asked.

"Our side, forty-five roughly, their side thirty or so." Jason answered.

"General Ahkim?" Clay asked, but was cut short by a coughing fit.

Trent moved and helped to get Clay sitting up straight as he spoke. "It'll be easier to breathe with him sitting up."

Jason removed the oxygen mask from around Clay's head so it wasn't in the way as Trent rubbed Clay's back to try and help get the coughing fit under control. Unfortunately there wasn't anything they could do about it, but let it pass. Vic was standing off in the back doing everything he could to keep his face neutral. He couldn't believe how the team or teams really, were acting around Clay. They were treating him like he was a terminally ill patient. He was just a little sick and was getting way too much attention for it. Vic had had pneumonia in the past, he wasn't acting like this. Clay was just weak and couldn't handle something like a little pneumonia, it was pathetic. Yet, everyone seemed to be more than happy to baby him. Vic swore he had no idea what anyone saw in Clay.

Clay had managed to get the coughing to stop, but his whole chest and sides hurt from it. Jason held the water bottle for Clay and helped him to take a few sips before he handed it over to Trent. They could all hear the deep wheezing that came every time Clay took a breath. Jason helped to get Clay back to laying down and he held the oxygen mask against Clay's mouth so he could get the oxygen his body desperately needed.

"General Ahkim was mine." Sonny said, stepping forward as Ray moved back to make room for him so Clay could see him. "He was at the Pakistani Outpost since long before he was promoted to General. He's been there close to twenty years. Found his wife working there and married her, they have three kids. Two older boys that are in the military at another location and a five year old daughter who lives nearby with the wife. From what I've read from both sides, he's a fair and decent man. He doesn't demand too much from his men, he is respected and rational. Whenever problems have come up he has worked on resolving them. He wasn't a man that was looking for war until recently."

Clay just gave a nod and it was clear he was out of questions for right now. It was pretty straight forward and even though there were a lot more details they could have given, it was all the details Clay needed.

"You ready to get moving?" Jason asked.

Clay just gave a tired nod and Jason moved the oxygen mask away and between him and Trent they got Clay up on his feet. He swayed slightly, but Jason had his arms around him and was able to hold him to get him stabilized. They started to make their way towards the entrance of the plane when Clay spoke.

"Shit wait, what was said?"

"About what?" Blackburn asked.

"General White, you said he said something to piss off General Ahkim, what did he say?"

"Who had that part?" Jason asked.

"I did." Vic said, stepping up. "The document said that General White simply said "I hope your daughter has a good life."

"That's what the General said he said or what his words translated into?" Clay asked, because that didn't seem right to him.

"The document was General White's written report. He was using a translating app on his phone, but it didn't speak. He just read what was said." Vic answered.

"But his report, did he write what was in Urdu or just the english words?" Clay pressed.

"It was in both." Vic answered, getting slightly annoyed by the questions.

"And was it ever professionally translated? What did the report say?" Clay tried again.

"I don't know and I told you what it said. What's the big deal? The General wrote what was said in his report." Vic asked, not sure why they were still talking about this.

"The big deal is General Ahkim is looking to declare war on America. A General, who both sides have said is not the type of man to do something like this. Something after twenty years pushed him over the edge. Whatever General White said was that thing and I can't negotiate a peace treaty without knowing without a doubt what was said to him." Clay said, but the more he spoke the weaker he was getting and his voice was getting more hoarse.

"I don't make a habit of questioning a General's report. Nor do I see the need to dive into the psychological thinking of an enemy's mind. It was probably just the last straw for him or he took offense to the General talking about his daughter. It doesn't matter why he's upset, your job is to manipulate him into peace." Vic said.

"I'm too sick to explain how wrong everything you just said is." Clay simply said. Clay looked over at Jason and he could see how pissed he was getting. "I need that report."

"What page was the report?" Jason asked Vic and it was clear by the tone in his voice that he was not impressed right now. They only had so long before the medication would wear off of Clay and he would be crashing. They needed him in a safe place for that to happen.

"I don't know. The files I had to go through were over three hundred pages. I didn't memorize the page numbers."

"Shit." Sonny said; he knew what was coming next.

Jason didn't even say anything he just turned Clay and got him back over to the bed. Full Metal went over to the files that Vic had to go through and brought them over to the table for them all to go through. Jason picked up the oxygen mask and held it against Clay's face as he spoke.

"You don't have to put it fully on, but you need to keep it over your nose and mouth."

Clay gave a nod and took it from Jason before he headed over to the table as did the others.

"Are we really looking for the report?" Vic asked. He really didn't understand the big deal in this. The General wouldn't have lied about what was said. This seemed like it was a waste of time. He was glad that it put less time on Clay to be out in the field before getting sicker, but still he didn't want to waste his own time.

"Ya we are and we wouldn't have to be if you had read the report properly." Full Metal said as everyone grabbed parts of the folder to go through.

"I did read it. It's not like the General is going to lie about what was said. I don't understand." Vic said, hoping that someone would just explain it to him.

"It's not that we are questioning what the General said. But he could have said it wrong and he believes what he said was right. We need the report so Clay and read it and see what truly was said." Ray explained.

"Clay is right, General Ahkim's behavior changed. Whatever was said to him had to cause that behavior change. I highly doubt he got that upset with someone wishing his daughter well." Mandy added.

"Being in Seal Teams is different then Tier One. We need you to not just read what is in front of you, but also think about it and what it could mean. You need to be able to analyze and process the information you obtain. You gotta be able to think outside of protocols and regulations. This is the first time you are making this mistake, there can't be another one." Jason said.

He understood that rookies made mistakes, Clay did plenty of times, same as him. They all have, but what Jason wouldn't tolerate was the same mistakes being made after you have been told.

"Copy Boss. I'm sorry I didn't see how it was important, but now I get it. It won't happen again." Vic said, apologetically. The very last thing he needed was to get on Jason's bad side. He wanted Jason to use him more and forget about Clay.

It took everyone on both teams and the support staff to go through all of the pieces of paper ten minutes before Brock finally found it.

"Here." He said, handing it over to Jason.

Jason took it over to Clay and Clay read it. They all knew it was bad when Clay simply said.

"Shit."

"What's it say?" Blackburn asked.

"Can you take a photo of the Urdu words and what the General said it meant please?" Clay said to Jason.

Jason pulled out his phone and took a quick picture of it as Clay looked over to Blackburn and spoke.

"Commanders and above have taken a course that helps you to say something in another language in extenuating White would have taken it as well. Can you read it out loud?"

"Alright." Blackburn said, taking the paper from Jason. Blackburn wasn't sure what Clay was getting at, but he knew he had a point. Blackburn read it as best as he could figure it said.

"Ok, what did he say?" Sonny asked.

"The words when spoken properly translate to what the General said. The only problem is, when you type it into a phone it translates properly. However, when you then try and say it, you never get it right. Some languages are more picky than others. Urdu is one of those languages that should never be spoken outside of a translator. It would have been better if he just let his phone speak. What Blackburn just said was, "I'm going to make your daughter my sex slave.""

"Fuck." Full Metal said.

"And we can assume that is how General White said it." Derek said; he knew this was going to be bad.

"And that is what turns a calm man into a man ready to declare war. His men probably heard it too. He's not going to just let that level of disrespect go." Ray said. This was becoming impossible.

"Nope, I have to convince him to. How long before this drug wears off?" Clay asked.

"About eleven hours. We gotta get moving." Trent answered.

Clay placed the oxygen mask down on the bed and Jason helped him to get up and they all headed out. None of them knew how well this was going to go over, but one thing they all knew, they were going to ensure Clay made it back to the plane alive and safe by the end of it. They all got into their vehicles and headed off to prevent a war, all being mindful of the ticking clock hanging over their heads.


	3. Chapter 3

Sitting in that hot car heading over into Pakistan was not a fun experience for Clay. He was exhausted, in pain and having a harder time breathing. The heat seemed to be making it worse and no matter how hard he tried he couldn't seem to get a proper breath. Needless to say, Clay was miserable. Even though the whole place was stuffy and hot, his body was shaking slightly from his fever. He was sweating and cold all at the same time, it was annoying and frustrating the hell out of him. All he wanted was to curl up in bed and sleep.

"How are you feeling? Your breathing sounds tight." Jason asked.

"Been better. It used to feel like this growing up from the heat, it always made it harder to breathe."

"When we get there I'm going to tell this General Ahkim he can go fuck a goat after this." Sonny grumbled. He was just as hot as the rest of them and he wanted nothing more than to end this and get Clay back home to bed.

"You have to watch what you say over there." Clay started, his speech still slowed.

"Why? It's not like they are gonna understand." Sonny said.

"They speak English Sonny." Clay said with a very tiny smirk.

"They better not. The only reason you are here is because General Ahkim doesn't speak English." Jason said, turning around to face Clay from the front seat.

"He speaks English, all of his men do. He's smart, he would have told them to not speak it around someone that could be an enemy. People will run their mouths off if they think you don't understand what they are saying. I can only imagine what some of our troops have said to them. Demanding to speak to someone that speaks their language isn't about accommodating them, it's about control. General Ahkim wants us to feel pressured and scrounge for someone. He's looking for blood."

Clay started to cough and they knew that talking was not a good thing for him. Trent was next to Clay and helped him to get the coughing fit back under control. Trent picked up the portable oxygen mask that he brought and placed it on Clay.

"No more talking." Trent ordered, but it was mostly directed towards the others in the car.

Clay just gave a small nod and put his head back against the seat. He closed his eyes, but he knew he wouldn't be able to fall asleep thanks to the drug. He felt like shit and he really wished he could have slept right now. Jason turned in his seat to look at Clay, he could see how miserable he was and it only fueled his anger at this whole situation. It was made worse by the fact that Ahkim spoke English and there was literally no point in Clay being here. He could have been back home tucked into his bed where he could sleep and feel better. Instead, they had to drag his barely conscious ass through the hot desert to play peacekeeper. It was bullshit and Jason was going to be letting Blackburn know it.

It was a good hour and fifteen minutes before they arrived at the Pakistani Outpost. With it being too small though, they couldn't drive through to their location, they had no choice but to walk the rest of the way there. Something none of them were happy about. Jason could already see the Pakistani soldiers ready and waiting, they were all armed and were not shy about hiding it. Jason got out of the truck and went around to Clay's side. He opened the door as Clay was slowly taking off the oxygen mask. Jason helped him to get it off before he spoke.

"Ok, everyone is armed and they look trigger happy. You are going to be surrounded by us at all times to keep you safe. I need you to wear this ear com too so if you hear them saying anything you can tell all of us. The first sign that they are going against us, you need to tell us."

Clay gave a very exhausted nod and Jason helped to get Clay out of the vehicle. Once he was standing he swayed slightly, but Jason had predicted that and held onto Clay until he was able to stand on his own. The others all came over to them, standing guard around Clay until he was ready to walk.

"Trent, you are on Clay duty, the rest of Bravo will form the protection circle. Everyone keep your head on a swivel." Jason ordered when Clay was ready to go.

Trent stood next to Clay and was there in case his legs gave out. Together they all slowly made their way over to the Outpost entrance, where six guards were standing. Jason, who was standing right in front of Clay stepped to the side slightly to allow Clay to speak without being blocked. Clay spoke quickly and was given a nod in return before the soldier headed off.

"He's taking us to the General." Clay supplied.

They all followed behind the soldier into the Outpost and further into enemy territory. Everyone was on guard, this wasn't just a normal mission, this mission involved one of their own going into a hotspot with no body armor. That wasn't including how sick he was. It was a good fifteen minute walk to the General's location and by the time they got there Clay's breathing was worse and he was shaking slightly. Trent put the cooler down and pulled out one of the water bottles.

"You need to drink this. You don't have to drink all of it at once, but keep drinking it while you are in negotiations. The water is going to help you feel a little better."

Tremt handed the water over to Clay after he opened it. Clay took a few small sips as Jason spoke.

"Talk to me Trent."

"His body is in rough shape, the heat is going to make it worse. The best way we can combat the heat is with water. We also need him seating for as much as possible."

"You feel faint kid, you need to tell someone." Derek added.

Clay gave a nod and the General made his way out of his shack and towards them with three armed soldiers. The General spoke and Clay didn't bother with translating any of it. He would only need to translate the important parts. Clay spoke back and after a moment the General gave a nod and walked away, leaving the others confused.

"Alright , what was that?" Sonny asked.

"He was expecting someone higher up. He's agreed to meet with me, but only inside and only one person is allowed in with me." Clay answered.

"No way. You are not going in there with at least three armed guards with only one person." Jason instantly said.

"I know, but originally he wanted just me and no gun. I got him up to me and one other person with a handgun each. He's not happy and not looking to make peace. This is our best chance of ending this before it gets out of control."

Jason let out a sigh. They all knew that even though Blackburn outranked them, this was Jason's call. This was his teammate and his son. If he said no, Clay wasn't going in, it was that simple. After a moment Jason spoke.

"Fine, I'd go with you, but it might make more sense for Eric to go."

"I agree. I can help with negotiations if Clay needs it. I am also a Commander and he might like that." Blackburn agreed, as he took off his rifle and handed it over to Trent, who didn't have one. As his job was to focus on Clay's health.

"Any sign of trouble, you say sunshine. We'll come in and get you out." Jason said to Clay.

Clay gave a small nod and him and Blackburn made their way over to the shack and headed inside. All the others could do now was wait for when they would finally come out, and hopefully alive.

"I don't like this." Sonny said.

"None of us do Son, but we don't have a choice." Ray agreed.

"At least Blackburn got to go with him." Full Metal said, but that was the only comfort they had.

It was an agonizing eleven hours before Clay and Blackburn came out of the shack. Clay looked like death walking. He was pale, shaky and he was having a harder time with moving. Blackburn was beside him, helping him as they walked. Once they reached them Jason took his place as Blackburn spoke.

"Let's get him to the vehicle and then we can talk."

He knew they would all want answers, but right now Clay needed to be sitting down and out of this heat. Without another word, they all headed back to the vehicles, going as slow as Clay needed. Once there Jason got Clay sitting down and everyone filed into their vehicles. Trent immediately turned his attention to Clay and gave him water.

"Trent?" Sonny asked.

"Turn the AC on, we gotta cool him down or his fever is going to skyrocket."

Sonny turned the AC on full blast and pulled off to the side when the other vehicles did as well. Blackburn got out and headed towards them, the others following suit. Jason got out and went around to Clay's seat and Trent reached over to lower the window slightly so they could all hear Clay and he could hear them, but it wouldn't let all the cold air out that Clay needed.

"What's going on?" Jason demanded.

"It was a long string of negotiations. There was only one chair and General Ahkim sat in it. He didn't care that General White didn't mean what he actually said, nor did he fully believe he didn't mean it. He is agreeing to a peace treaty though. He doesn't want to see his men and people being killed."

"So he agreed, great let's get the kid home then." Sonny said.

"But." Clay started before a coughing fit hit him hard.

"No talking." Trent said again as he helped to get it back under control and get an oxygen mask on him.

"What's the but?" Ray asked Blackburn.

"General Ahkim needs someone to pay for what was said to him in front of his men. He needs someone to pay for the disrespect that has been brought to his family. He wanted to kill General White, but Clay was able to get him down to a beating."

"What? That's his great negotiation skills? He agreed to let an enemy beat one of our Generals?" Vic asked, shocked and outraged that Clay would ever agree to something like that.

"General Ahkim wanted to publicly whip him to death. Clay was able to get him to agree to a public beating for five minutes. The General will live and the blood will have been spilt for the disrespect to his family. It was the best that Clay could do. Especially in his state. The only problem is, if General White doesn't agree to it, because Clay is the negotiator, it will fall to him."

"What does that mean?" Sonny asked, not liking the sound of that.

"It means, Clay would have to be the one to take the beating and if he doesn't, they will strike war on us." Blackburn said, and he knew everyone was going to hate it.

"No, no way. His body can't handle getting attacked. A five minute beating is bad enough without being this sick, it could kill him." Jason instantly said.

"Will General White even agree to it? He hates Clay and Ash, he could say no just to make Clay take the beating." Ray supplied.

"I would suggest when we speak with him that we don't release that part." Blackburn offered.

"You want us to lie to a General?" Vic asked, surprised.

"To avoid the possible death of Clay, yes. And technically it's not a lie if we just don't give him other options." Blackburn answered.

"We're in this mess because of him. I say fuck him and let him take the beating." Full Metal said.

"Still though, are we really going to let one of our own get a beating?" Franklin asked.

"We don't have a choice. Normally no, but this is a potential war we are talking about. General Ahkim has made it very clear he is not budging on any of it. This is the best that Clay could do and I'm not sure anyone else would have been able to get him to go down this far. This is our only option. We're supposed to be at the Outpost tomorrow at nine and be there to watch the beating to show American support. Afterwards we can leave." Blackburn said.

"We gotta get him to the Outpost and out of this heat Boss." Trent said.

Everyone looked at Clay and they could see he was struggling with something as simple as breathing. His body needed the break and with the medication wearing off soon, he was going to crash.

"Let's get to the Outpost. Trent and Derek, you have Clay stay with him in a room until one of us joins you. Blackburn, Ray and myself will go and speak with General White and inform him of the situation. The rest of you, I suggest you get showered and eat something. It's going to be another long day tomorrow." Jason ordered.

The others didn't even argue, because they knew that Clay needed to get out of this heat and in a bed. They all got into their vehicles and headed the short distance to the American Outpost. The whole time Trent spent it with Clay trying to get him to drink as much water as possible and get his breathing under control. Jason was torn between watching Clay and watching the road to make sure they didn't have any surprises. He knew that Blackburn would already be on the phone with Samuel and Lindell soon enough with an update on the situation. Jason had no idea if Admiral Richards would be able to order General White to take the beating or not. Jason was just hoping they would be able to convince him to do it.

Once they arrived at the Outpost they drove through until they reached the bunk area. They parked the vehicles where they could and got out.

"Get him into a bed, we'll handle the General." Jason ordered.

Derek came over and grabbed the bags while Trent and Sonny both got Clay up and out of the vehicle. The four of them headed into the bunk house and focused on getting Clay situated. Jason, Blackburn and Ray all headed off to find General White, while the others got showered and some food.

"Let me handle the talking." Blackburn said, as they found General White in the command room.

"General White, I'm Commander Blackburn I'd like to speak with you for a moment."

General White turned and gave them his attention. Instantly Jason didn't like him and he would have to be careful with everything he said so it wouldn't put Clay in a bad position.

"I was told you would be coming. How did the negotiations go?"

"They went well with all things considered. Special Warfare Officer Spenser was able to get General Ahkim to agree to not going to war with the States. Though there is a condition to the peace treaty."

"And what would that be?"

"General Ahkim believes that what you said to him was that you were going to take his daughter as your sex slave. The translation was not correct either in how you said it or your phone didn't translate it properly. He feels heavily disrespected and the only condition he had to sustain the peace was if you received punishment for the words you spoke to him." Blackburn said he was trying to figure out the right wording to get General White to agree. The only problem was he didn't know how to tell him that his punishment would be a public beating.

"A punishment, oh really? And what would that be? It's not my fault they misunderstood what I said." General White said, without a care in the world.

"With all your respect General, an expert advised us that the way you said the sentence changed it dramatically. That is why General Ahkim is demanding retribution in the form of a five minute beating."

General White let out a quick laugh to that. "A five minute beating eh? That's all? General Ahkim is insane if he thinks I would for one second agree to it. And if your precious rookie knows what's good for him, he'll go back and negotiate better."

"Special Warfare Officer Spenser did his best. General Ahkim wanted to kill you, he was able to get it down to a relatively harmless beating, especially for a man of your size. If you do not agree to the beating, then General Ahkim is prepared to strike war on America within minutes. We won't even get out of that Outpost before they start firing upon us. This is the only solution we have to prevent a war that will result in the death of millions." Blackburn said, trying to get General White to see that he was the only one standing between war and peace.

"Sir, with all due respect, a war with Pakistan will only get the men in this Outpost killed. Plus the thousands of soldiers and sailors that will come to the front line. With the war going on already in the Middle East, we can't afford to have another war at this time. I can understand not wanting to take a beating, it wouldn't be high on my priority list either, but the only one that can save all of those American lives is you Sir." Jason added. He knew they would need to play to General White's ego and reputation. That was the only way they were going to save Clay.

General White just stood there for a moment thinking. They had no idea how well this was going to go over. They couldn't force him and they very much doubted a phone call from Admiral Richards was going to do much. He couldn't order something like this down onto his men regardless of what was at stake. It was unamerican and forbidden for any official. After the longest minutes of their lives General White finally spoke.

"And when and where is this supposed to happen?"

"Nine o'clock tomorrow morning in the Pakistani Outpost." Blackburn answered.

"Fine, I'll be there. But only because I will not risk the lives of my men."

"Thank-you General, this will not go without notice." Blackburn said with a friendly smile.

They all turned to leave, but General White's voice stopped them.

"And Hayes, I suggest you tell your baby rookie to get better at negotiating. I'll be seeing him there tomorrow and I expect a moment to speak with him."

"I'll let him know Sir." Jason forced out. He was not going to let the General push Clay around. He did the best that he could with what he had to work with. The General should just be happy that he wasn't going to be killed.

They all headed out and Jason let out a long sigh and both Ray and Blackburn knew he was pissed. They couldn't blame him, they were pissed as well. But at least the General was going to take the beating, which put Clay back in the safe zone.

"I know you're pissed, but look on the bright side, Jace. He's going to do it." Ray started.

"Ya and blame Clay for every hit he takes. He could try and use this against him later on and I'm not happy about him wanting a word with Clay. The kid is sick enough he doesn't need to be hanging around longer than he has to tomorrow."

"And we will make sure he doesn't get that word. I can simply distract the General tomorrow before the punishment and then afterwards he'll be getting looked at so you can sneak Clay out. It'll be fine. For now focus on getting Clay situated and then get yourself cleaned, some food and rest. We're all going to need it for tomorrow." Blackburn ordered.

"He's right Jace, come on let's go check on the kid and then get ourselves sorted." Ray said, as he placed his hand on Jason's upper back.

They headed back to where Trent, Derek and Sonny took Clay. When they walked in they saw that Clay was already changed and asleep in the bed and Trent had an IV line going into him and an oxygen mask on him. Sonny was helping Derek to prop Clay's back up with some pillows to help ease his breathing.

"How is he?" Jason asked, softly as to not disturb Clay.

"The drug wore off so he should sleep throughout the night. I have enough for one more dose of the drug for tomorrow. He just needs rest and his antibiotic." Trent answered.

"We left that on the plane though. You said we couldn't bring it because of the heat." Ray said.

"Jackson went to grab it with Brock, Full Metal and Franklin. There's a spot here we can store it and keep it cold. When they get back I'll give him a dose and then he can sleep until it's morning." Trent answered.

"Alright, all of you go and get showered and something to eat. I'll stay with him and make sure he's ok." Jason ordered.

"You sure? I don't mind staying Boss." Sonny said.

"I know. I got him. Afterwards I'll go and shower and grab some food and I'll sleep in here with him." Jason said.

"There's three beds so I'll be in here too just in case something happens." Trent added.

"Should we be trying to get him to eat something?" Ray asked.

Clay hadn't really eaten anything in days now. He knew the human body could go a few weeks without food, but that didn't mean you should.

"Not tonight. Tomorrow after I give him the drug, I'll get him to eat a bit of jello before we leave." Trent answered.

"Alright, come on Son we stink." Ray said.

Sonny just gave a nod and looked at Clay one more time before he followed Ray out of the room.

"Alright, he should sleep the whole time. I'll be back to give him his antibiotic when the others get back." Trent said to Jason.

"I got him, you go take care of yourself. You've been working overtime this past week with him." Jason said with a warm smile.

"He's worth it." Trent simply said, before him and Derek headed out.

Jason let out a sigh as he started to remove his gear. He looked over at Clay and he couldn't help the small shake of his head.

"What am I going to do with you son?"

Jason knew none of this was Clay's fault, it was just the bad luck of the draw where missions were concerned. And he knew things like this happen when you had special skills. Clay was one of the best snipers the Navy had and when you combine that with his language skills, it puts you on some weird missions and weird missions are the ones that can be the most costly. One thing was for sure, when Clay was back to being healthy Jason was going to be utilizing him more in a number two position, something he would have to talk to Ray about. It was time to get serious with Clay's training, because there were no guarantees in this line of work and Jason had far too much to teach Clay still. They needed to be prepared should the worst happen to him. It was time to start putting pieces into play to get the future of Bravo secured.

XXX

It was later at night when Vic was making his way through the Outpost to find General White. Everyone had already gone to bed and Vic was able to keep his distance from them. He wanted to speak with General White and inform him exactly what happened today. He didn't believe in lying to a General, but this was more about his opportunity to make Clay pay even more. If he could get Clay out for an extensive medical leave, that would give him the opportunity he needed to secure his place within Bravo.

Vic found General White in one of the offices alone, something he was very thankful for. He really needed to get in and get out before anyone came in and saw him. General White was finishing up some paperwork and didn't even bother to look up when Vic walked in. He knew the General was a special type of man, he loved power and he loved to make people feel like they didn't have power over him. Vic stood and waited to see if General White would speak up or not. After a moment when General White didn't speak, Vic decided to.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you General White Sir."

"And yet you are." General White said, not even bothering to look up.

"It's important Sir, it's about General Ahkim's condition regarding yourself. I'm afraid Bravo didn't release all of the information to you."

That caught General White's attention. His head snapped up and looked at Vic, took in his uniform and the very clear Bravo trident he had on his chest.

"You're Bravo." General White stated.

"Yes Sir, Bravo Seven."

"There's one very important rule that Jason Hayes has and everyone knows it, you don't go against Bravo. Yet here you stand to tell me something they obviously left out on purpose. And why would that be?"

"I don't believe in going against Bravo, but I also don't believe in misleading someone of higher ranking either. If you go into this situation, I feel like you should be going in with all of the information and not just what someone wishes for you to know Sir."

"And what is the information that was left out?"

"It is a five minute beating and it was negotiated down from being a public killing. However, it is a public beating in front of everyone at the Outpost. Also, you have the ability to say no. If you refuse then the person who did the negotiations is expected to take your place. That person would be Spenser and if he refuses then it would result in war."

General White couldn't help but smirk. This was too perfect. Not only did he not have to take a beating, he could also put Clay through some pain and put him in his place.

"Thank-you for the information. I'll take it under advisement."

"You're welcome Sir, but if I may say one last thing. I would prefer for no one to know that I told you this. It would obviously not go over well with the team."

"I won't say a word. I believe in returning favors and rewarding good behaviour. What's your name?"

"Vic Lopez Sir."

"I won't forget it. Dismissed."

Vic gave a nod and headed out. He was happy to see that no one was out in the hallway. He quickly made his way back to his empty room to get some sleep for himself. He knew he was going to have some great dreams tonight and he couldn't wait until tomorrow.

XXX

Getting Clay up, dressed, into the truck and back to the Pakistani Outpost took a lot more effort than it did yesterday. The guys couldn't believe how hard it was to get him to keep his eyes open even with the drug in him. Trent had said it was because his body was so exhausted it was trying to shut down even though the drug was keeping him awake. He was in more pain from standing around all day yesterday. His fever was a hundred and three, resulting in Trent and Jason having to give Clay an ice bath before they could even get him ready. They tried to get him to eat, but that was not going to happen so they quickly gave that hope up. They pulled up to the Outpost and Jason went over to Clay's side of the truck. He opened the door and gave Clay his full attention.

"I know you don't feel well and just want to go home. We are going to get you in and out as quickly as possible. Hopefully this will only take an hour and we'll be out of here."

"I really don't feel well." Clay said with a very shaky voice. His breathing was nothing but deep wheezes and his whole body was trembling. He needed to be in the hospital still.

"I know Sunshine." Jason said softly as he ran his hand through Clay's hair.

Jason wished he could have taken Clay home right now and not being out in this heat, but he couldn't. All he could do was just get Clay through this so he could get him home.

"Jason, General White just arrived." Ray said, behind Jason.

"We gotta go Sunshine." Jason said to Clay.

Clay gave a very small nod and Jason helped him to get up and out of the truck. Jason held on though as he knew Clay's legs were going to give out, which they did the second they touched the ground. Jason held onto Clay as they headed into the Outpost. They made their way towards the center where they knew they would need to be for the public beating that was about to take place. They were all expecting Clay to have to speak to General Ahkim, but to their surprise General Ahkim was speaking with General White. General White had his phone out so they knew he was using it to speak for him.

"What the hell is he doing?" Full Metal asked.

"Apologizing?" Brock suggested.

"He don't seem like the type to say I'm sorry to me." Sonny commented.

"All we can do is wait. We can't hear them." Ray said.

After a moment General White walked away and General Ahkim turned towards them and spoke in his language.

"What did he say?" Jason asked Clay.

"He wants to talk to me." Clay said.

Jason helped Clay walk over there, but before Clay could even say anything he was being ripped out of Jason's arms by three of General Ahkim's men and taken away to the middle of the circle formed by the people within the Outpost. The others moved to go after Clay, but General Ahkim's men already had their guns on them and on Clay. They would have risked their own lives, but they weren't going to risk one of General Ahkim's men shooting Clay before they could get to him.

"What are you doing?" Jason demanded to General Ahkim.

General Ahkim started to speak in his language, but Jason cut him off.

"Cut the crap I know you speak English, you understand me. What the hell are you doing with my man?"

"General White has not agreed to the public beating. Your man worked as the negotiator and as such he is responsible for the punishment that General White is refusing."

"He can't take a beating. You can see how sick he is. We took him out of the hospital two days ago so he could be here. A beating could kill him."

"I am sympathetic, but General White has refused to accept his punishment. It needs to be paid."

"I get that you need blood, you need to show strength to your men and reclaim the respect your family lost by General White's words. I get it. Then take it out on me. I'll take the beating."

Jason would easily take this beating for any of his men, but especially Clay. He couldn't just stand around and watch as his own son get beaten for five minutes. There was no telling how bad it would be for Clay.

"The offer is generous and it shows the type of leader that you are. I respect that, but changing my mind is not how I operate."

"I'm not asking you to change your mind on the beating, I'll take it. Your daughter was disrespected, that man right there is not just a member of my team, he's my son. You're a parent, you can understand my position."

"I do understand your position and I respect your willingness to protect your son. He knew there was a chance he would have to accept this punishment. He agreed to it and as a father I am a firm believer in holding my children accountable for the decisions they made."

And with that General Ahkim gave a nod to his men, the five of them that were surrounding Clay, and they began to hit him. Multiple guns were pointed right at Jason to keep him in place. He could hear his men all screaming to let Clay go and to stop. His eyes were focused solely on Clay, on his son, who was now on the ground doing everything he could to protect his head from the blows that were raining down on him. A five minute beating would be bad enough against one person, but there were five men all attacking Clay. Jason couldn't even imagine the level of damage this was going to do to him.

It was the longest five minutes of Jason's life. At one point Clay had lost consciousness, leaving his head open for attack. When the men finally stepped back and the guns were lowered everyone ran for Clay. Jason was the closest and he got to him first. He was instantly on the ground, not even thinking about the fact that he was leaving his back open for attack. Clay was on his side and there was blood pouring down his face from a head wound. Jason knew better then to move him until Trent and Derek checked his neck and back over first though. He placed his hand on the right side of Clay's face as he spoke.

"Clay, come on son wake up."

Bravo and Alpha surrounded Jason and Clay as they arrived. Derek and Trent immediately went over to Clay and began to check his neck and back as best and as quickly as they could. They both knew without saying a single word that they had to get Clay out of here and fast.

"Trent?" Sonny asked, as he kept his eyes on the crowd.

"We gotta get him to the plane. We can't treat him here. His neck is cleared."

"Back is cleared." Derek said.

Both the medics and Jason worked on carrying Clay and they all got back to the vehicles as quickly as they could. Once at the truck Jason got into the driver's seat while Trent and Derek got into the back with Clay and they were off. Jason drove as fast as he could and did everything he could to avoid any bumps or holes in the rough terrain as possible. The very last thing he wanted to do was cause Clay anymore pain. Driving to the plane was nerve wracking to both Derek and Trent. They had a limited supply of what they needed with them, because they weren't expecting anything like this to be happening to any of them. When they finally arrived at the plane Trent hopped out and allowed Derek and Jason to grab Clay and bring him onto the plane.

"Get him on the bed." Trent ordered as he ran for his more extensive medical bag.

Derek and Jason got Clay down on the hospital bed and Derek moved it away from the wall so they could be on either side of Clay. He immediately started to cut off Clay's shirt so they could have access to his injuries. Full Metal tossed Derek his own medical bag as Trent ran back over to them. Everyone stood close by waiting to see what was going to happen. Clay's body didn't have much blood on it just from his face, but they could already see the bruising on his skin. It went all over his torso, arms and face. Jason was fairly certain Clay had a broken wrist as well based on the black bruising and how swollen it already was. The most concerning though, the deep and wet wheezing that Clay had. He was struggling to breathe and even the oxygen mask on him wasn't helping much. Derek checked Clay's eyes as Trent already had his stethoscope on and pressed against Clay's chest. Suddenly the wheezing stopped and both Derek and Trent looked at each other before Trent was moving into action.

"He's not breathing. His lungs are worse than before. He's got blood in his lungs, a rib must have pierced them. I need to drain the blood from his lungs. We need to intubate him. Jase, start mouth to mouth but not chest compressions." Trent ordered as he ran to the back of the plane to grab yet another emergency kit.

Derek started to hook Clay up to an IV and get some fluids into him to help with the blood loss, but also to get Clay fully sedated for what they would need to do. Jason instantly went over to Clay and started to do mouth to mouth, the only thing keeping Clay breathing was the breath Jason had to give him.

"Can you intubate him? Do you even know how?" Sonny asked, completely panicked now.

Field medics weren't trained on doing intubation or chest tubes. They were something that was done by a doctor. They had never seen Trent do one nor did they even know if he could do one.

"I've never done it." Derek said.

"I've done it a couple of times in a classroom." Trent said as he arrived back and started to get what he needed ready.

"But you can't do this, can you? We should be getting a doctor." Ray said, doing his best to keep the worry from his voice but it was pointless.

"He's not breathing and without oxygen within the next five minutes his brain will start to die. We don't have a doctor anywhere around here and to wait for a chopper to airlift him to a hospital, he'll be dead. He needs to be back in the States and the only way to do that is to intubate him. I don't have a choice." Trent said as he finished getting ready.

They could all hear how stressed he was. This was not something he ever expected to have to do. He took a field medicine course for doctors just on the off chance of something terrible happening in the field. He wanted to be able to keep whoever it was alive until they could get to a real doctor. He never expected to ever have to use it or that he would need to be doing this to his kid brother.

"You can do this Trent." Brock said confidently as he was holding onto Cerberus to keep him from jumping up with Clay.

"Jase stop." Trent said.

Jason moved back and they could see the blood on his mouth. Clay was drowning in it and they needed to hurry if they were going to stand a chance at getting him back to the States. Derek used a penlight and placed it underneath Clay's neck. The power of the light was enough to shine through Clay's skin, allowing Trent to have better sight of Clay's throat. Trent tipped Clay's head back a bit more and used the laryngoscope to hold Clay's mouth open. Trent then put his own penlight into his mouth to give himself more light as he took the tube and slowly started to insert it into Clay's mouth and throat.

Jason couldn't help but think back over his time in the Navy. All of the flights he's taken, the places he's been. All of the horror he had seen and heard in his life. In this very moment two things would forever be burned into his mind. The first, how deadly silent the plane was. There were easily close to thirty people on this plane between both teams and their support staff and you could have easily heard a pin drop. No one was breathing, no one was talking, there was nothing but a dead silence that Jason had never heard before. The second, watching one of his brothers push a plastic tube down the throat of his oldest son. Down the throat of the man that was set to take over this team. The only thing that was going to be keeping Clay alive was riding on Trent being able to get that tube into Clay's airways.

Trent pulled the cover of the tube up and out of Clay's throat and then he connected the Ambu bag. Derek put on his stethoscope and listened to Clay's chest as Trent squeezed the bag. Derek moved around from one lung to the next as Trent squeezed the bag. After a very long minute Derek moved back and spoke.

"You're in."

Sonny let out a long breath as he spoke. "Fuck."

Relief was felt throughout the plane as everyone took comfort in knowing that Clay was now at least getting oxygen. He wasn't breathing on his own, but he was breathing.

"We're not out of the woods yet. I have to drain the blood from his lung. Jase, I need you to come here and squeeze the bag just like I am. Do it nice and smooth and slow. Too much air going into his lungs and it could cause lung tissue damage. Do one full squeeze, slowly release your hand and three seconds later do it again." Trent explained.

"Got it."

Jason moved to take Trent's spot as Trent went over to Clay's right side with Derek joining them. Derek worked with Trent and assisted him as Trent had to cut into Clay's side. This time though he simply cut through the stitches as he would be able to use the same hole that the hospital did for the tube. Trent was hoping they would only need to drain the fluid from his one lung, but he would have to see how much drained out.

"Do we need to stop in Germany?" Blackburn asked.

"It would be better if we could get him home with our Doc. I don't like him being in a strange hospital with his allergy. Once I get this tube in he'll be good for take off and we can start the process of getting him there." Trent said, as he focused on what he was doing.

"I ever see that General again, I'm gonna kill him. How the hell did he know that Clay would be the one to take that beating? He was standing there just smirking the whole time." Sonny said, pissed now that Clay seemed to be stable.

"He probably didn't know Clay would be the one to get beaten. He probably figured that if he said no, then Ahkim would go to war." Vic said. The very last thing he needed was anyone thinking that someone had said something to General White.

"Why the fuck would he want that?" Sonny challenged.

"He didn't seem like the type of man that was happy being stuck in an outpost all the way out here. Normally a General isn't in an outpost, so he must have done something to piss someone above him off. He probably figured that if Ahkim started a war, he would have a front row seat to the action." Vic suggested.

"It makes sense with who White is. He's got some enemies higher up, it's how he ended up here in the first place. It was either this or a discharge. Vic is probably right about what White was hoping for." Blackburn said.

"Are you sure we shouldn't be taking him to a hospital?" Ray asked, he was not liking how bad Clay looked right now.

Trent got the tube in and blood immediately started to come out of it. Derek was ready though with a bucket to catch the blood.

"It's too risky with his allergy. They give him even a little bit of phosphate and it could put him into a coma, something that could kill him right now. He needs to be home with our doctor that has worked with him for the past few years. He has a list of every medication that Clay can have and what he's had in the past. We gotta get him home." Trent answered. This wasn't something he was going to give control up.

"I'll tell the pilot to get ready for take off." Mandy said, as she headed off.

"Sutures?" Derek asked.

"No, I don't want to stitch the tube in, just in case we have to remove it if he gets a clot. We'll use the strips to hold it in place for now." Trent answered.

Together him and Derek got the tube secured and with that done all that was left was for them to check out the rest of his injuries and give him some stitches to the cut on his forehead. Derek put an ice pack on Clay's wrist to try and help reduce the swelling so it could be properly looked at, while Trent did some quick stitches. It was a good twenty minutes later when Clay was finally ready for take off.

"Do you have a ventilator for the breathing tube?" Vic asked, because he had no idea how they were going to make a twenty-two hour flight back home with Clay like this.

"No, we have to manually do it. Ray, trade places with Jase." Trent said.

Ray went over and waited for when the three seconds in between pumps hit before he took Jason's place. Jason moved down the side of the bed and placed his hand on Clay's chest.

"Manually? It's a twenty-two hour flight home. How is that better than taking him to Germany?" Vic asked. There was no way they were going to be able to keep pumping that bag for that long. It was insane.

"For the last time I am not risking a doctor giving him something he is allergic to. His body is too compromised to fight anything off. There's twenty-eight of us and it is going to take all of us to keep him alive until we get there. We are the only ones that can breathe for him. We are the only ones keeping him alive." Trent said with a tone that everyone knew meant there was no point in arguing or commenting on it anymore. He was done and he expected everyone to follow regardless of their ranking, because right now it was medical, putting him in charge.

"What do we need to do?" Jason asked, looking to move forward. Arguing wasn't going to get Clay home where he needed to be.

"We all take turns with the bag. Fifteen minutes each and then we rotate out. Derek and me will rotate two hour checks on Clay."

"Why only fifteen?" Sonny asked.

"It might not seem it but after squeezing the bag slowly every three seconds your hand will hurt. I can't risk one of us getting too tired and not doing it right. Fifteen minutes is it." Trent explained.

"Bravo will go first, then we can rotate around within our groups." Jason said.

"Bravo first, then Alpha, then Bravo Support, and finally Alpha Support. Mandy, Lisa and myself will be with Bravo." Blackburn said.

"I'll be with Alpha. I suggest that when it is not your group's turn that you sleep. It's going to be a long flight." Samuel said.

"Jase already went, so we'll do Sonny after Ray, then Brock, then Lisa, Mandy, Blackburn, myself, Vic and then Jase again before we switch off. Full Metal if you are in the Alpha group that will help with evening out the numbers. After Bravo it will be the two hour mark so before I crash I'll do the check on Clay." Trent said.

"Each group goes for two hours then we all have to go three times before we land." Full Metal said.

"Alright, get ready for take off and then everyone start getting yourselves some sleep. We got a long flight." Blackburn ordered.

Everyone got moving to get their gear off and start getting their area ready. With having two teams it was a little cramped, but they were making it work. Vic got his gear off and got his hammock up and ready. He pulled out the burner phone and saw that Ash had finally texted him back. He had been waiting a few days to hear anything from him and he was not surprised by the message he received.

_Who is this? And why should I be interested in anything you have to say?_

Vic smirked, it was typical of someone that used to be in the teams. He was skeptical and cautious, but that was ok because Vic knew he would be able to get Ash on his side.

_You like being in the spotlight and your son is a great way to make that happen. I want him out of my way. And you get the added bonus of hurting Jason Hayes, who is calling your son his. Happy to meet in person so we can discuss something that will benefit the both of us._

Vic knew that Ash would be willing to meet and help him plan a way to take Clay out of Bravo and hopefully the military. Ash was not a parent, what he was is a man looking to be famous and rich. Having Clay out of the military and force him to rely on his father was perfect for it. Ash would be able to control Clay and turn him into someone that he could use to push his fame further. Plus, he would be able to get his revenge against Jason and from what Vic had heard, that was something Ash desperately wanted as well. Vic was about to get into his hammock and wait for his turn but everyone on Bravo, including Mandy, Lisa and Blackburn were over by Clay's bed waiting for their turn. It was insane to Vic that they would all be staying awake while it wasn't their turn, but he knew if he didn't join them he would be the one in shit. Vic headed over and sat down on one of the crates and just waited. He couldn't wait until they were finally home and he could get away from Clay.

XXX

Twenty-two hours had never felt so long to Jason before in his entire life. They had been able to keep Clay breathing the whole time and nothing new came up, something Jason was very happy about. Still though, even when he was supposed to be sleeping he couldn't seem to bring himself to. He was lightly sleeping in his hammock, but most of the time he was still able to hear everything and he was always keeping an eye on Clay. If he wasn't watching him in his hammock he was sitting beside Clay holding his good hand. Thankfully there were no complications and Clay was holding his own. He still wasn't able to breathe on his own, but both Trent and Derek said it was normal. His lungs needed the break and the hospital would be able to get him back to breathing on his own.

Jason was so pissed off. He couldn't believe that General White had turned around and said no. Part of him couldn't help but wonder if someone had told him that Clay would be the one to take the beating if he didn't. That smirk told Jason that he was all too happy with himself and the pain that Clay was being put through. He wasn't going to let this go, he was going to get down to the bottom of this, he didn't care how long it took. Clay deserved answers and he was going to get them for him.

Once the plane touched down it became chaos all over again. The medical team was already there on standby with a gurney and an ambulance that will take Clay to the hospital. Trent would be going with them while the others drove over. Jason would have loved to be the one to go with Clay, but he figured it was better to have Trent with him in case they had any medical questions for him. Blackburn had already updated Lindell on the situation so he was already briefed, allowing the others to get their gear put away so they could head to the hospital.

With Clay loaded up into the ambulance with Trent the guys all got to work on getting their gear back into their cages before they would head over. There was no need for conversations, they all just wanted to get their stuff done and head for the hospital. Ray had already texted Niama to let her know that Clay was on his way in. She was working today and when one of them came into the hospital she normally was able to be the nurse on their case. She had sent a text back letting him know that she would head down to the ER and wait for when Clay was brought in.

With everything squared away they all headed for their vehicles and headed off for the hospital. Jason checked the time and he knew that Emma would be out of class right now. He wanted to call her to let her know that Clay was in the hospital and sick. Her and Clay had gotten close over the last few years, especially after Alana's death. Jason would often find them hanging out at the house or Clay would be there to help Emma and Mickey with their homework. Emma and Clay would go out to the movies or grab some food. At first Jason wasn't too sure about them spending so much time together. Clay was only eight years older then Emma so it wasn't like he was too old for her, but it was pretty clear early on that they didn't have that type of feelings for each other. It was more sibling than anything else. It made him feel good though. The biggest worry Jason had was dying and leaving his kids to face this world on their own. He knew with Clay being in their lives, if the worst should happen, Clay would be there for them. Clay would make sure Emma and Mickey were safe and cared for. He knew the other guys would, but with Clay it would be different. They would have someone that they knew as family there to help them through life.

After three rings Emma answered. "Hey Dad, I'm just heading to the library. What's up?"

"I just wanted to let you know that Clay is in the hospital." Jason said gently, but also doing his best not to make it sound like he was sugar coating things with her. He learnt quickly how much she hated it.

"Oh my god, is he ok?" The worry was clear in Emma's voice.

"He's a little banged up from our last op. Our op before this though he ended up with a mild case of hypothermia that turned into pneumonia, so he's pretty sick right now. I'm on my way to the hospital now to get more information on his status."

"So he's sick and beat up. Damn, is he going to be ok? Do I need to come home and help?"

"You don't need to come home and Clay would want you to focus on your school work. We got him. He'll be off from work for a couple of months or so until he's healed up and healthy again. I just wanted to let you know that he was in the hospital. But don't worry Clay will be fine."

"If you are sure, I don't mind coming home to help or be there for him. It sucks being sick, but to be hurt on top of it is no fun. Will you let me know what the doctor says?"

"Ya of course. I'll keep you posted on him. I'll get him to crash at mine for a little bit so I can be there for him until he starts to feel better."

"Ok, well have him call me once he feels up to it. And please let me know if there is anything I can do."

"I will Em. I'll call you once I have some answers. I love you."

"I love you too."

Jason ended the call and he felt better knowing that Emma now knew that Clay was injured and sick. He didn't like her to worry, but she would have been pissed if he didn't tell her about it. He could at least downplay it for her without it being too much of an issue. Jason was just hoping that Clay would be able to pull through this without too much of an issue. One thing was for sure, he never wanted to have to give Clay mouth to mouth again. To watch as a tube was pushed down his throat. This mission was going to be haunting his nightmares for a long time coming. Jason arrived at the hospital and headed inside to see everyone there and waiting, including Trent.

"What do we know?" Jason asked Trent.

"The doc is with him now. He's going to see if he can get Clay breathing on his own, but he might have to be on a vent until his lungs get to heal a bit. It just depends on how the tests go."

"What tests?" Jason asked.

"MRI, CT Scan for his head and some blood work. We'll know more in a few hours."

"So all we can do is wait?" Sonny asked, not happy about that at all.

"It's all we can do right now." Trent said with understanding in his voice.

"Come on brother, let's go sit down and wait." Ray said, as he placed his hand on Sonny's back.

They all made their way over to the waiting area and got comfortable, as comfortable as they could in plastic hospital chairs. It wasn't even ten minutes later when they were all taken out of their silence by the appearance of Ash Spenser walking over to the Nurses' Desk.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Sonny demanded.

"How did he even know?" Brock asked next.

Vic didn't say anything, just allowed the others to get pissed off. He had been the one to text Ash from the burner phone saying that Clay was in the hospital and now would be the perfect time for him to win one over on Jason. Vic needed to cause tension and a rift between Jason and Clay and the best way to do that was to get Ash around. After speaking with the nurse Ash turned and headed over to their waiting room. The others all stood up and Jason stood front and centre.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Jason demanded.

"My son is in the hospital. Where else would I be?" Ash said.

"Oh really? Because he was in the hospital for close to two months when he got both of his legs blown up. You never showed up once. Hell, you never even called him. Now you want to show up and play father?" Jason said.

"I'm not playing father, I am his father." Ash argued back.

Sonny gave a dark laugh to that. "Oh ya some father you've been eh? Let his mother give birth to him in some back alley while he was addicted to heroin. Left him in an active war zone for thirteen years. You don't give two shits about him. And you're not his father."

"I am his father and anything from before is on his mother, not me."

"It is all your fault. And you are not his father, nor does he want you here." Full Metal said with an edge himself.

"You don't get to speak for him." Ash said back.

"No, but I do. He wants nothing to do with you. You blew it with him over and over again. Just when he starts to think that you might actually care, you might actually be there for him, you disappear and you try and use him to push your reputation further. To try and get even more fame. He's done with you." Jason said.

"You might be his team leader for now Hayes, but in this hospital that means shit. I am his father and that gives me all the power." Ash said with a smirk.

"Except I have medical power of attorney and next of kin on his forms. That means I get to make all of the decisions where he is concerned until he is able to voice them himself. Sit around all you want, you won't get to learn anything about his condition or see him. And for the record, I'm not here as a team leader. I'm here because _my son_ is in the hospital."

"You're delusional if you think for a second I'm going to let you have anything to do with him. Enjoy it while you can Hayes, but soon enough he won't be in your life, he won't even be in Bravo. Don't underestimate the connections that I have." Ash said with a threatening tone.

"I wouldn't threaten me if I were you Ash. You never had him and you never will. Go head take a seat, waste your time, it's the closest you'll ever get to him."

Ash gave a dark chuckle. "I'm coming for you Hayes."

Ash stepped away and headed over to the other side of the room. Jason didn't care though, he wasn't going to let Ash anywhere near Clay, not until Clay said it was ok. Jason knew the only reason Ash was here was so he could try and manipulate Clay while he was in a vulnerable position and Jason wasn't going to allow it.

"We really gonna let him stay?" Sonny asked.

"We don't own the hospital Sonny." Ray said.

"He wants to sit there, let him. He won't get anywhere near the kid." Jason promised.

Jason was not about to let Ash worm his way back into Clay's life. If Clay wanted to see him then he would respect his decision and allow it, but until those words came out of Clay's mouth when he was able to think clearly he wasn't going to let Ash anywhere near Clay. The guys all sat back down, but it was clear they weren't happy about this. Especially Sonny and Full Metal. Jason couldn't help but internally chuckle at Full Metal. He wasn't one for getting attached to people. Yes he had Alpha and his brothers, but he didn't tend to get attached so quickly to new people and Clay was a new person to him. When Clay had gotten blown up in Manilla though Full Metal was gung ho about getting the bastards. He had grown attached to the kid so much so that he gave Derek his chance at being Alpha One and he moved over to Bravo.

When Full Metal had approached him looking to see if he could make Bravo his new home, Jason was all for it. He knew that Derek was more than ready to take over and it would allow him to shine and build Alpha into what he saw for it in the future. Full Metal was a leader, but he was also really good with following. Jason knew he would never be able to follow someone else so going to a different team was out of the question for him. Still, having Full Metal around gave him another person that would be there for Clay and protect him. Clay was the future of Bravo and Jason made that very clear when Full Metal joined, something he had no problem with. He had grown attached to the kid without even truly knowing him, but he could see very clearly how much every man on Bravo cared for him and what he could do to the future of the teams. To Full Metal he was worth protecting and dying for.

It was four hours later when Dr. Moore finally walked into the waiting room. Everyone got up and headed for him, including Ash. Dr. Moore took a quick look at Ash, knowing who he was before addressing Jason.

"Do you want everyone to hear this?"

"Only my guys. There some place we can talk without unwanted listeners?" Jason asked, and everyone knew he was referring to Ash.

"I'm his father. I am the one that legally you need to be addressing, doctor." Ash snapped, not impressed with being ignored.

"And legally you would be correct if Clay was underage. However, he is twenty-seven and next of kin written in his file is Jason Hayes. He also has medical power of attorney should Clay be unable to make decisions for himself. I have to go by what Clay's file states. If Jason does not wish for you to be present, then I have to respect that. If you will please follow me so we can talk." Dr. Moore said.

Jason gave a nod and they started to follow after Dr. Moore when Ash spoke.

"You are not his father Hayes."

"Actually I am. You can go, you're not wanted nor needed here. But leaving is something you are very good at so I'm sure you'll figure out how to do it again." And with that Jason turned his back on Ash and headed off with the guys to hear about Clay's condition.

Vic followed the guys, he didn't really care about what was going to be said but he had to keep up appearances. It wasn't even a minute later when his phone was buzzing. He pulled it out and read the message real quick.

_Sheridan Hotel room 1205 tonight at nine._

Vic just smirked, he knew having Ash here would only piss him off. He needed Ash's attention and hatred directed towards Jason, it was the only sure fire way he would want to go after Clay. Now he was going to finally be getting somewhere and he was looking forward to it. They walked into a private conference room and once everyone was into the room Dr. Moore spoke.

"He will make a full recovery to ease all of your fears."

With just those few words the atmosphere in the room changed dramatically. Gone were the stressed out brothers and now here were the brothers that were ready to tackle whatever Clay needed to get back to active duty.

"Injuries?" Trent asked.

"He's got a mild concussion and quite a bit of bruising on his torso. None of which are an issue and there is no internal bleeding to his stomach or brain. His left wrist is not broken, but it is badly sprained and we have it in a brace right now to help it heal up without getting banged around."

"Ok, that's all good news. But what about his lungs? He stopped breathing, is he breathing on his own now?" Jason asked, because that is what mattered most to him right now. Injuries can heal, but if Clay's lungs weren't working that was a whole other beast.

"He is hooked up to a ventilator which is breathing for him. I didn't even try to get him to breathe on his own just yet. I want to give his lungs a couple of days to rest. The ventilator will allow his lungs some time to heal." Dr. Moore started.

"There was bleeding in his lungs, I had to drain it. If he didn't have a broken rib how did the blood get there?" Trent asked.

"A combination of things. Let me explain. When Clay joined the team I did extensive research on his medical history and I spoke with him in depth about everything he could remember. The problem is before the age of eighteen we know nothing about him medically speaking. We know that he didn't have any vaccines, he got them when he enlisted. We know there is no record of him ever being in a hospital or a single doctor's appointment for the first eighteen years of his life. Up until this point I've had no need to run an MRI on his lungs. However today did give us some more information." Dr. Moore said as he pulled out the scans that he had brought with him.

He placed the one up on the board for everyone to see. "This is a healthy adult male's lungs. Now as you can see they are clear and a good size. This is Clay's lungs."

Everyone could instantly see how cloudy they were, but Trent noticed what Dr. Moore was getting at.

"They're smaller." Trent stated.

"Oh shit, they are." Full Metal said, as he took a good look at them.

"Why are they smaller?" Ray asked.

"It's what happens when they are underdeveloped. Clay mentioned that his mother was an active heroin user. He didn't know anything about his birth just that it wasn't in a safe place. My guess based on his lungs he was born premature, probably around twenty-nine weeks. His lungs were viable, but they weren't fully developed. And he most likely would have been addicted to heroin. His lungs are approximately twenty-five percent smaller than they should be. He's been able to overcome that difference though and live a perfectly normal life."

"Can he be a Seal if he has less lung capacity?" Vic asked.

"Normally, no. However, this was never caught before he enlisted nor after. There was no need to have an MRI done on him and he was able to do the physical requirements. After nine years of being in active service it wouldn't be an issue for him." Dr. Moore answered.

"What are the other marks in his lungs?" Brock asked.

"The clouding is from the pneumonia. These lines right here." Dr. Moore said, pointing to it on the image. "They are scars on his lung tissue. You typically see it in adults who have untreated asthma."

"He said he had a hard time breathing sometimes when he was a kid. He thought it was from the extreme heat. He must have had asthma when he was younger. That wouldn't be uncommon for premature infants." Trent said as it all started to click into place.

"Correct. Only he still has asthma. It's untreated and mild, but it will be something he has to live with. He can take an inhaler when his chest feels tight, it's nothing that will prevent him from being in the field. Now for the bleeding, it was the perfect storm."

"Meaning?" Sonny asked, confused.

"The hypothermia compromised his immune system and brought forth the pneumonia. With his lungs being smaller he has a higher risk of getting a lung infection such as pneumonia and bronchitis. The untreated asthma only helps fuel the infection. It's why his pneumonia came on so strongly and fast. However, the hypothermia was not the only cause for his immune system to plummet like it did. Testing confirmed that Clay has TB."

"What?" Jason asked, confused now.

"How the hell is that possible?" Sonny demanded.

"He grew up in a country that was riddled with TB at some point he caught it, but he was one of the lucky ones. It was dormant in him. The hypothermia pushed it into active status and everything else fueled it, like adding gasoline to a fire. The blood in his lungs was a combination of the TB and the beating he took. Now the good news is TB in the States is highly curable. He's already on an aggressive treatment for it to help knock it down. And in a couple of days I'll get him off of the vent and breathing on his own. With the antibiotics for the pneumonia he will start to feel better with them. I'll get him an inhaler to help with the asthma. Everything will be documented so in the future we can keep a better eye on his lung health."

"A perfect storm." Trent said with a shake of his head.

"But he'll be ok?" Ray asked, looking to confirm.

"Once we get him healed up and healthy again, he'll be back to his normal self. The only difference is he'll have an inhaler to fix any tightness in his chest." Dr. Moore said warmly.

"How could he have not known he had asthma?" Brock asked.

"He would have grown up with it. He probably figured it was the heat, like he said, and after a while your body just adapts to it and gets used to it. By now he wouldn't have thought anything of it." Dr. Moore explained.

"How long will he need to be off?" Jason asked.

"He can go back to duty in six to eight weeks, but he can't be in the field for another twelve to sixteen weeks. I know you guys go on tour in six weeks. I'll see how he is and if he is doing well and healing properly then he can fly out with you, but he'll be bound to quarters for two more weeks and then he'll be base bound until the end of tour. But he will be able to be in HAVOC and helping you that way."

Dr. Moore knew that the guys hated leaving one of their brothers behind when they went on tour, but especially Clay. This way they would have Clay there with them without putting Clay at risk.

"Thanks Doc." Jason said on their behalf.

"So all we do is wait now?" Sonny asked.

"That's all you can do. His body just needs to rest and in a couple of days I'll get him off of the vent and in a week if all goes well he can head home to recover."

"We appreciate it Doc." Ray said.

"He's in room 415, and he is sedated but try to keep it down. There is also a cot in there." Dr. Moore said with a knowing look at Jason.

"We will." Trent said.

Dr. Moore headed out and everyone in the room took a moment to digest what they had just learnt. They were relieved that Clay would be alright and make a full recovery, but they were also concerned now about what his lungs and asthma would be like in the future.

Sonny let out a sigh before he spoke. "Leave it to the kid to go all out."

"I didn't even think about TB. I should have when he said he grew up in Africa." Trent said, annoyed with himself for missing this. He should have caught it. He could have gotten Clay to take a test when they got back. It would have been simple and they would have caught the TB sooner than they did.

"It's not on you brother. We had no idea he even had it in his system. He didn't even know it. You can't predict things like that." Ray said.

"The important thing is that we know now and it's being treated. The doc didn't even think to test for it last time either. It's not on you." Jason said.

"You know what I can't figure out?" Sonny started.

"A lot." Full Metal said with a smirk.

"That kid is always moving. I've seen him run the training course for six hours straight before getting tired. How the hell is he doing that with less lung than everyone else?" Sonny continued as if Full Metal hadn't spoken.

"And asthma." Brock added.

"His body adapted to it. It would have happened over time, but his body got used to the amount of oxygen it could take in at one time. But just like everyone else he trained his body to go longer with what oxygen he had. Like when you practice holding your breath underwater. You do it enough times you'll be able to do it for longer. Clay would have worked extremely hard to make up the difference. Interestingly enough aerobic exercises like running, helps to improve your lung capacity. Subconsciously Clay might be so good at running and have a love for it because it's one of the times he can breathe better. The more he runs and does drills or running the training course it is forcing his heart to pump more blood, pushing oxygen throughout his body and helping to improve his lung capacity. In a way he's been self-medicating all of his life." Trent explained.

"Damn." Full Metal said.

"Moving forward, what can we do for him?" Jason asked.

"Not much. I'll make sure I have refills for his inhaler when we go anywhere, especially on tour. Now that we know it's asthma I'll be keeping a closer eye on his breathing while on tour. The dusty and hot weather will be harder on his lungs over long-term. I'll also work with him on some breathing exercises that will help with his lung capacity as well. There's really nothing we can do other than trust that Clay will tell us when he's having a hard time. I do think it would be good to loop in Derek. With him living across the hall it would be helpful for him to have a spare inhaler in case Clay runs out and needs it." Trent answered.

"Do that, I'd rather be covered on all fronts. I'm assuming there is no risk to us with getting TB." Jason said.

"Nope. Clay's will only affect him, otherwise we'd all be sick long by now." Trent answered.

"Alright, let's head up there and see him. Then you all should head home and get showered and sleep." Jason said.

"You need a shower and sleep too brother." Ray started.

"I'll be fine and I can sleep in the room." Jason said stubbornly back.

"Why don't you head home, get changed and showered and I'll stay with Clay. Then when you come back I'll head out. That way you have a chance to get cleaned up and something to eat." Vic offered.

The very last thing he wanted to do was be stuck sitting watching Clay, but he had to get on Jason's good side and that was through Clay.

"Perfect. Vic can stay with Clay and then you can head home and get cleaned up before coming back here. You need to take care of yourself so you can be there for when Clay is awake." Ray said.

Jason was not happy about it, but he knew that Ray was right. He needed a shower and to get changed. Then he would grab something to eat on his way back here for the night. Jason just gave a nod and they all headed out of the room and up to Clay's temporary home for the next week. Walking in to see Clay with a tube down his throat and a machine breathing for him was hard for them all to see. He was hooked up to multiple wires that went to other machines, he had three IV bags going into him as well. The bruising looked even worse against the stark white of the hospital room. This was not how the mission was supposed to go and each and every single one of them felt like they had failed Clay. Their job was to protect him and they didn't do that this time around, and what made it worse was that it was the one time Clay needed their protection.

"Jesus." Sonny said softly as he went over to the left side of Clay's bed.

"He looks bad, but he'll be ok Sonny. It's good that he has the vent breathing for him, it'll give his body the chance to recover. He'll be up and moving before you know it." Vic said, trying to offer what comfort he could. He needed to separate the relationships within the team from Clay. Sonny and Clay were best friends, he needed to take that place. Something he was already on the way of doing with Clay dating Rebecca.

"Ya, ya he will be." Sonny said, sounding a little bit more confident.

They all stood with Clay for roughly ten minutes before they started to head out. Vic went and sat down in the chair on the right side of the bed and after promising he would call Jason if something happened he was finally alone. Vic sat back and pulled out his phone. He didn't have time earlier to look up what he wanted to and now was the perfect time as he had some time to kill. While he was trying to fall asleep on the plane he had overheard two of the guys on Alpha's support staff talking about Clay. As it turned out one of their fathers was an instructor when Clay was in boot camp and it turned out that he had a form of high-end autism. He still couldn't believe that Clay had some form of autism. Not only that, but Bravo was keeping it from him. Vic knew without a doubt that the guys all knew about it and they were choosing to hide it from him for whatever reason. Vic knew that they were all still warming up to him, but he thought by now they would trust him. It would seem that he had a long way to go still. Vic wanted to know more about the type of autism that Clay had so he could try and agitate it. He had to start breaking Clay down, he just wasn't sure how yet. He was hoping Ash would have some ideas in that department for him.

He knew he needed to make himself more known in Bravo. He needed to be a valuable member and not just a member of the team. Vic had already decided that he was going to learn Pashtu so it wasn't just Clay that could speak it. But he would also need another skill, something that only he had. He was thinking about learning some EOD as no one on the team specialized in that and it would come in handy while out on missions. It would eliminate the need for a Strap or another Seal to join. Vic just needed to sort out a plan for how to deal with Clay and then work towards achieving it. He was hoping that Ash would be able to give him some ideas that he could use to get Clay out of the picture once and for all.

XXX

It was just before nine that night when Vic arrived at the hotel. He hadn't heard from Ash since that one text, but he didn't expect to. Vic was really hoping he would be able to get some good ideas from Ash on how he could get Clay out of Bravo once and for all. He had gotten on Jason's good side tonight by spending the time with Clay in the hospital. Jason had even brought him a coffee to say thanks. It might not seem like much, and Vic didn't want a coffee, but it meant that he was getting on Jason's good side. And if he was on his good side, he had a very good chance of building that connection with him. The only way to secure his spot in Bravo was to sever all ties they had with Clay.

Vic headed up in the elevator and once on the correct floor he headed down to the room. After knocking, the door opened a few moments later to reveal Ash Spenser. Vic was glad to see that Ash was in fact here and this wasn't some test or game and Vic could tell he was a little surprised to see him. He would have seen him back at the hospital earlier. He would have seen him with Bravo. Ash moved back and allowed Vic to walk in, he didn't speak until the door was closed and locked.

"Didn't expect for it to be you. No one goes against Jason Hayes."

"I'm not going against him, I'm against Clay. There's a difference."

"Not where he is concerned. If he finds out you have it in for his precious rookie, he'll take you out of Bravo and maybe even the teams."

"I'm not worried about him figuring out it's me that contacted you. Clay should never have been allowed to be a Seal, he needs to be removed. I can cover my tracks, but it's easier if there is someone else who knows how the teams work. Are you really going to tell me you don't want to make Jason pay for how he is with you? For taking your son away from you."

Vic knew he just needed to get Ash's temper focused on making Jason pay for what he has done. If he was focused on that, then he wouldn't care what happened to Clay in the end.

"They will both pay for this level of disrespect. Clay's always been disrespectful towards me, it got worse once he joined Bravo. He thinks he can erase my footsteps in the Navy, make it seem like I don't even exist. When people hear the name Clay Spenser, I want them to think of him as worthless. I want hatred in their eyes, not respect. They both need to learn their place. The plan is what matters, what did you have in mind?" Ash asked, leaning against the table with his arms crossed.

"I don't have much in terms of a plan. I know I need to sever the ties he has with everyone in Bravo. Outside of that I was hoping you might have a game plan that I could run with."

"Bravo needs to turn on him, but they won't do it in a callous way. It has to be slow so they don't even realise it. Build distance between them and they won't even realise what has been happening. Start turning other people against him. He likes to play in the political world, you have to make it so that others that are below that will want him to fail."

"Alright, how do I do that? For the majority of the people I meet they all love him."

"Then you find the people who don't. You have that internal social media platform, utilize that and the people who hate him will come forward. Let others do the work for you so your hands never get caught dirty."

"I see what you're saying. I'll create something tonight for it."

"What do you get out of this though?"

Ash wasn't stupid he knew that if Vic was here he wanted something. Something badly enough to go behind Jason's back and risk losing everything.

"I found out I was drafted into Bravo because they thought I would make the perfect number two to Clay. That was the only reason they picked me, so I could play backup to Clay. I don't like him, I know he's your son but I don't like him. I hate how everyone treats him like he's so special, when he's not. He knows a bunch of languages because that's the only skill he had to offer. He shouldn't have even been allowed in Green Team until he was old enough like everyone else. He needs to be put in his place and I will never play second fiddle to him." Vic answered honestly.

"You're right about one thing, he does need to learn his place. I'll put some feelers out, you focus internally and make his life hell. My son is weak, he'll give in eventually."

"All I've seen is him being weak. I had to rescue him from a car, he's sick right now and everyone is acting like he's going to die. It's pathetic. I'll put him in his place and when he is no longer in Bravo he'll turn to you, his true father."

"Good. Keep that phone hidden, no one can know we've been talking."

"I will. I appreciate your help and insights." Vic said with a kind smile. He didn't want Ash against him, he would need him still.

Ash just gave a nod and Vic knew his time was up. He headed out and checked the time, it was still early enough. He figured he would call Sonny and see if he wanted to meet up for a drink. If there was one thing Vic had learned about Sonny in his time in Bravo, it was that the Texan was always up for a drink. Tomorrow Vic would work on his plan to destroy Clay's reputation.

XXX

It was a week later and Clay was finally being able to be discharged from the hospital. The past week had been a long one for both Jason and Clay. After two days Dr. Moore was able to reduce Clay's sedation and get Clay off of the ventilator and breathing on his own again. Jason never thought he would be so happy to hear the wheezing in Clay's breathing before. Yet, it was the best sound he had heard in days. The past week had been hard on Clay. The antibiotic he had to take for the pneumonia was making him tired. Then the medication he was on to cure him of the TB was making him even more exhausted. Clay could barely keep his eyes open for the majority of the week. He still had a low grade fever and would for the next week still. For the most part of the next month he was going to be exhausted and weak. Jason didn't care though because Clay was going to be ok and he was going to be spending at least the next week at his place.

Jason walked into Clay's room to see Clay was laying down in the bed and doing his best to keep his eyes open. Clay had changed into some sweat pants and he had his shoes on and a t-shirt. There was a zip-up hoodie next to him on the bed. He was no longer hooked up to any machines or oxygen now that he was cleared to leave.

"Hey, I got your discharge papers. I get to break you out of here. Even got your ride." Jason said, as he pushed a wheelchair into the room.

"Oh good. I didn't think I was making it to the door." Clay said with a small smirk.

"I got all of your medication and your inhaler already. I got your bed set up and the kitchen has food in it. All we gotta do is get you there."

"Are you sure you're ok with me crashing at your place?"

"Absolutely. It's better for you to be with someone right now until you are feeling a bit better. Come on, let's get you out of here."

Jason went over to the bed and held his hand out for Clay to take. Clay took it with his good hand and Jason got Clay sitting up on the bed. He picked up the sweater and helped Clay to get it on. Clay's body was very stiff and sore from being sick, the TB and the hospital bed. It will be good for him to get into a comfortable bed. With Clay ready Jason placed his right arm around Clay's waist and helped him to stand up and over to the wheelchair. Clay let out a sigh as he was now sitting. Jason made sure he had everything before he started to push Clay out of the room and out of the hospital. He had parked his truck right out front so he would be able to get Clay into it without having to go too far. Once they got to his truck Jason helped to get Clay standing and together they were able to get Clay into the passenger seat. The groan of pain didn't go unnoticed by Jason. It wasn't just the infections that Clay was dealing with, but also the beating. He was still covered in bruising and had a concussion. It all boiled down to Clay feeling like shit for the next couple of weeks. Jason was really hoping he could keep Clay at his place for the next two weeks at least. Blackburn had worked his magic and got the team off for the next two weeks, but that was all the time they could get because they had to leave for tour in six weeks. Still, that would give Jason two weeks off to make sure Clay got over the worst of things.

Once they were on the road Clay spoke. "It feels like I'm never going to be able to do anything ever again."

"It's just temporary Sunshine. Your body is fighting off two very powerful infections and on top of that you got beat up. It's a lot for your body to handle. And that is before you factor in having asthma and having underdeveloped lungs. You just need a bit of a break, but you'll be back in no time."

"I still can't believe I have asthma and my lungs aren't one hundred percent. I don't remember much from before I got to Africa. I knew she was on drugs, heroin, but I had convinced myself that she wasn't using while pregnant with me. That she cared about my welfare at least a little. Turns out she didn't care at all."

"I wish I could tell you something that would make the pain you feel from growing up better. I hate that I can't take that from you and I would if I could in a heartbeat. You got us now though and we're never going anywhere. I'm just sorry we failed you this time around." Jason said with a deep guilt to his voice.

"Stop that. I told you, it's not your fault. General White is to blame for what happened. God Jase you and everyone are the only reason I'm even here. You guys spent twenty-two hours breathing for me. You got me home and you kept me alive, that's all that matters. I don't want you to feel guilt over it. I mean it."

Jason looked over at Clay and he could see that Clay was serious. Jason gave a nod and reached over and ruffled Clay's hair gently, causing Clay to groan at it. Jason gave a small chuckle as he spoke. "Let's get you home and back to being healthy. I called Emma and told her you were getting discharged, she said call when you felt up for it."

"I will shortly. How is she doing?"

"She's doing good. I didn't tell her how you got injured, just that you were a little banged up from our last op. She knows that you are sick and about you having asthma. Mickey doesn't know anything."

"No, I don't want him to know. When I see him next I'll be fine and I can always tell him about the asthma if he asks. He doing good in school?"

"He's doing great. He's loving it, thankfully. I don't need another son in the military to worry about."

"I'm fine." Clay said, warmly.

"This time. Let's not make any more trips to the hospital though for a couple of years at least eh?"

"Sounds good to me. Spent too long in the hospital last year."

"How are you doing with all of that? I know we've talked about it, but I just want to make sure you're still ok with everything that went down."

"Ya I'm good. Bad dreams are gone and there's no problems with my legs. It's all behind me now."

"Good. I'm always going to be there though if you need to talk about it."

Clay gave a nod before a coughing fit took over. After a few minutes he was able to get it under control once again, but it only made his body even more exhausted. Clay put his head back against the seat and closed his eyes to try and get the pain under control. Jason didn't say anything just allowed Clay the time he needed to catch his breath. When they arrived at Jason's apartment Jason pulled into his spot and Clay opened his eyes. Now was going to be the hard part, getting Clay up to his apartment, thankfully he had an elevator, but still without a wheelchair it was going to be hard. Though, once he arrived he could get into bed and sleep the day and night away. Jason got out and headed over to the passenger side of his truck. Clay had his seatbelt off just as Jason opened the door.

"Oh this is gonna suck." Clay said, already tired just thinking about it.

"We'll go as slow as you need." Jason said with understanding to his voice.

Clay gave a small nod before he got out and Jason was right there to help hold him up and keep him steady. Together they made their way towards the front door. Clay's movements were very slow, but Jason didn't care how long it took he wasn't going to rush Clay. By the time they made it into the elevator Clay was barely able to stand up. He was breathing heavy and his breaths were wheezes more than anything.

"I got you." Jason said, as Clay's legs gave out on him.

"Walking should not be this hard." Clay said as he tried to catch his breath.

"It's just because you are so sick. It'll get easier as you get healthy."

It was bothering Jason how hard it was for Clay to do something as simple as walking, but everyone said it was normal. He was still very sick, getting discharged from the hospital didn't change that fact. Still, Jason hated seeing any of his brothers sick or injured and he truly hated seeing his kids like this. If he could he would have taken it all from Clay in an instant. Jason never expected ever in his life to find another son. He never expected that someone that should have just been a brother at arms would turn into his own son. It wasn't a situation he ever thought he would be in and he wasn't really happy with being in it. It wasn't that he was mad or upset that Clay had wormed his way into his heart. It was that he had something else he needed to worry about out in the field. It was hard for him to walk that very fine line of having Clay working under him. He had to be a team leader and allow Clay to do what he does best and trust in his skills, but at the same time he hated it when he had to send Clay off alone for overwatch. It was hard on him, but it was his burden he had to carry, he couldn't put that on Clay. It wasn't Clay's fault that they had developed a different connection to each other and he wasn't going to let Clay think for even one second that it made things harder on him. Jason didn't regret a single second of it.

Once on his floor Jason helped to get Clay down the hallways and into his apartment. He headed straight for Emma's bedroom. Jason got Clay sitting down on the bed and his breathing was getting really bad now. Clay looked over at the bedside table, but didn't see what he was looking for.

"Inhaler." Clay forced out.

Jason headed out and quickly grabbed the inhaler from the kitchen where the rest of Clay's medicine was. He ran back into the room and handed Clay the inhaler. Clay shook it and took it as he was told to do. It was still really weird for him to have to be using one, but he had to admit it did help when his chest felt tight. After a moment he was able to breathe easier again. It wasn't perfect, but it was back to what it was before he was moving around so much.

"You ok?" Jason asked concerned as he bent down so they were eye level.

"Ya it's a little easier now. Never thought I would ever have to use one of these." Clay said, holding the inhaler up slightly.

"I know, but it's something you need. You've needed it since you were a young child. It'll take you a bit to get used to, but it's a mild case of asthma and you've dealt with it your whole life without the inhaler. Once you no longer have the TB and pneumonia your lungs will be all healed up and you might never need the inhaler afterwards."

"I hope so. I'll get used to it though and it'll be nice to not have that tightness everytime we go on tour."

"I can't believe you had a tightness in your chest and never said anything to anyone. Seriously, what am I going to do with you?" Jason teased.

"Trade me to another team, but that doesn't seem fair to the other team." Clay joked back.

"I am not trading you. I put too much work into you to do that. Besides the only team that you would survive being on would be Alpha. Though, you might be the reason Beau retires." Jason said with a playful smile.

"You're terrible."

Jason gave Clay a warm smile as he took the inhaler and placed it down on the bedside table. Clay kicked his shoes off and Jason helped him to get his sweater off and into bed. Clay let out a moan at how soft the bed was. He was finally going to be able to sleep on something that wasn't hard and without being woken up every couple of hours.

"Get some sleep Sunshine." Jason said warmly before he headed for the door.

"Hey Jase." Clay started and Jason turned around.

"Ya kid?"

"Did Ash really show up at the hospital?"

"He did ya. I didn't let him be there when the doc told us about you. I didn't allow him to see you. I know you both have a complicated relationship; I didn't know if you wanted to see him but I figured you could say so once you were awake."

It was a weird line they were walking. Ash was Clay's biological father, but he was never there for Clay at all. Still, it was human nature for a son to want his biological father to be in his life.

"I don't want to see him, that's not it at all. I was just wondering who called him. He's not in my medical file, so who called him?"

"He's not in your file?" Jason had figured that Ash's number was in Clay's medical file. He had assumed the hospital would have called him.

"No, before the team I had Brian as my next of kin. When I enlisted I left it blank. You guys didn't call him?"

"Fuck no, we never would. I'll look into it."

"I know it shouldn't be a big deal, I just don't want him in my life. He's toxic and he doesn't care about me. All he wants is to use me to get ahead."

"It's your life Clay, if you don't want him in it or knowing anything about it, that's your decision. I do agree with you though, I don't think he deserves to be in your life. I think it's better for you to not be around him. I'll check with the hospital and see if they called him. If they didn't, I'll make sure everyone in Bravo's and Alpha's support understands that he is to not be contacted."

"Thanks Jase."

"Get some sleep. I'll wake you up when you need to take your medication again."

Clay just gave a nod and Jason headed out of the room, but he only closed the door part way just in case Clay needed him. Jason headed into his living room and sat down on the couch with a big sigh. For the first time in almost two weeks he could finally breathe again. Clay was safe tucked into bed on the road to recovery and it took a serious weight off his shoulders. His son was home safe and sound in his bed.

XXX

It was a couple of days later when Clay was finally feeling up for a phone call with Emma. It was just after one in the afternoon and Clay knew that she would be out of classes right now. He was laying on his right side and he placed his phone against some pillows to hold it up so he wouldn't have to. After a moment Emma's face appeared on his phone.

"Wow, you look terrible." Emma automatically said.

"Thanks, that's what I long to hear." Clay said jokingly.

"Mission accomplished then Sailor. Do you feel as bad as you look?"

"Pretty much ya. I've stolen your bed too."

"It's more of a sibling bed then my bed. It's good that you are with dad right now; he can help you get back to healthy." Emma said with a warm smile.

When Clay was first introduced to the family Emma could tell he would be different. He was younger than she expected, then all of them expected to be really. But she had been assured by Uncle Ray that he was very talented in and out of the field. As time went on Emma could see how much Clay belonged in Bravo, but she could also see how well Clay fit within their own family. It started off small really, Mickey having a question about his homework while the guys were around. Clay had no problem explaining anything to him. Then when Emma needed help with her Spanish homework, it just made sense to call Clay over and have him help out. Clay was never bothered by it and he seemed to like teaching people.

Homework turned into him staying for dinner and then that grew to them hanging out outside of homework and the house. It was so natural that they became close, that Clay became close to Mickey. And before you knew it, Clay was over for birthdays and holidays with them. He became their older brother in a way that none of them ever expected, but none of them would change a single second of it.

"I'm looking forward to the healthy part. It's been a rough couple of weeks. What about you? How's school going?"

"Amazing. I'm acing all of my classes and I'm set to be home for when you guys get back from tour. I'm gonna pick up Mickey and meet you guys on base."

"Awesome, it's been a while since I've seen you both. Does Dad know?"

It was an unspoken rule between them. When it was just them talking they didn't go with the front of Jason being Jason. Emma knew that Clay and Jason both saw each other as father and son and she had no interest in pretending otherwise.

"No, I want to surprise him."

"I won't say anything. He'll like that."

"How are you doing with everything though really?" Emma asked, and Clay could hear she was concerned.

"With the exception of being sick, my body is used to everything. It's my mind that has to get used to it. Finding out I have asthma, had it my whole life basically, was surprising. But it also made sense all of the times growing up, and since, that my chest was tight. I just figured it was from the heat, but now I know that wasn't it. I'm trying to adjust to it all. It was a shock and then I found out that my lungs are actually twenty-five percent smaller than they should be."

"What? Dad didn't tell me that."

"He wasn't sure how much I wanted you to know. Growing up my mom was a heroin user and prostitute, it wasn't a good situation. I thought she had stopped using while pregnant, but it turns out she didn't. The Doc thinks I was born around twenty-nine weeks due to the heroin use. So my lungs are viable, but they are underdeveloped."

"I'm sorry Spense. Is it going to be a problem for you being active?"

Emma knew that her dad could never be anything but active in the field, but Clay didn't seem to have the problem. He wanted to be in the field, but he could also handle being outside of the field. Clay would thrive in an office and work behind the scenes just as much as he did in the field. It was one thing Emma didn't have to worry about with Clay.

"No, it would have been if I was enlisting but after nine years of it being undetected I'm good. No one is going to try and pull me out of active status, especially after being active for so long. The only issue that I need to keep an eye on is getting lung infections."

"Do you tend to get them?"

"Not normally no. This is the first time I've had pneumonia. I've had bronchitis a couple of times, but it wasn't too bad. Trent's gonna keep an eye on things and I'll be extra careful."

"Good, I'm glad it won't really affect you. It just sucks that you have to deal with it."

"It does, but apparently I've been dealing with it my whole life. I just have to get my head around it."

"You will. How's Rebecca handling it all?"

"She's not. We actually broke up about two weeks ago, before the operation that gave me hypothermia."

"What? Why didn't you say anything?" Emma asked shocked. She thought Rebecca and Clay worked well together.

"It was just before my op and then everything went to shit. I haven't even told the guys yet."

"What happened?"

"Nothing crazy. An ex-boyfriend came back into town and she realised that she was still in love with him. He was kinda the one that got away. She wanted to give it another chance and I mean I get it. I don't know what I would have done if Stella showed up looking to get back together with me. We parted on good terms and we're still going to be friends."

"Well that sucks, but also good that you are going to still be friends. I know you really liked her. It was good of you to be understanding though. Have you heard from Stella?"

"Not since she left for that teaching job. What about you? Any guy I need to be threatening?"

"Not right now. I'll let you know though. I'm focusing on my school work and getting into the swing of things."

"Dating is overrated." Clay joked.

"It really is right? I came to College to focus on my school and build a career. Yet all of my friends seem more interested in dating someone or going to parties. I'm not saying I don't go to parties, I do, but I go like once every couple of weeks. They go almost every night practically. What's the point of paying all of this money to go to school if you are going to spend it drunk and hungover?" Emma said as she rolled her eyes.

"Unfortunately most people do. Keep in mind a lot of them are getting away from their parents for the first time and they don't understand how expensive schooling is. They'll figure it out once they flunk a few courses and have to pay for it themselves. It's good that you aren't partying all the time, you don't need to put yourself at risk like that. You wearing that nail polish I gave you?"

Clay had given Emma a clear nail polish to wear when she was going to go out to parties or a bar. He knew Emma had a fake ID, he wasn't worried about that, he wanted to make sure she was safe. The nail polish was clear and if she dipped her finger into her drink, if it was roofied then the nail polish would change to green. It was just another level of defence for Emma to have and it made Clay feel better. He had also shown her behind Jason's back some self defence moves so she would be able to protect herself if something came up. He also showed her how to get a gun or knife out from someone's hand. Clay just hoped she would never need to use it.

"I've been using it and I told my friends all about it. You can get it up here in a few local spots so we all use it no matter what. My one friend, Jackie, a couple of weeks ago, she went to a party alone and she was wearing the polish and one of her drinks came back with something in it. She didn't drink any of it and she dumped it out. She also told all of the girls there about her drink before she headed out. She also reported it to campus police and they went in to shut the party down and searched the whole place and everyone for any drugs."

"I'm glad she was wearing it and did something about it. Unfortunately, college is a breeding ground for bad people just as much as it is for good people. You really gotta be careful when you're out. I want you to have fun, but it's gotta be safe fun. Sexual assault, it has the power to kill you. It destroys lives and your life is far too bright to ever be dimmed out."

"I know, I'm safe I promise. You taught me what I need to know to be safe. Don't worry about me. You focus on getting better yourself."

"I'll be fine."

"I'm sure Dad is doting on you and refusing to leave you alone." Emma said with a smirk. Send Jason Hayes into a war zone and he's cool and collected. But have one of his kids sick, he turns into a mother hen on steroids.

"He got Blackburn to give the team two weeks off. He shows up every few hours with something for me to drink and soup." Clay said with a smirk.

It was a little weird for Clay to have someone around him like this when he is sick. He had gotten so used to doing it all on his own. To suffer through it on his own. It was weird, but also nice to have Jason around to help him out. Even if it was bringing him some water or some soup.

"Yup, that's dad. You missed it from growing up, he was crazy when we got chickenpox." Emma said with a huge smile.

"Thankfully I've already had those."

Emma looked down at her watch before she spoke. "Shoot, I gotta go. My class is gonna start in twenty. Let me know how you are feeling and I'll see you in person when you get back from tour."

"Be safe and I'll see you soon."

"I love you brother."

"Love you too sis." Clay said with a warm smile.

The call ended and Clay put his phone back down. Talking with Emma always made him feel better. She was the perfect sounding board when his brain was stuck and if he ever needed someone with a strong moral compass outside of the team, Emma was always his go to person. Clay never expected for his life to change so drastically when he was drafted into Bravo. Adam once told him the teams were family, Clay didn't really believe it. But now he knew just how true it was and he couldn't have been happier. He had a family now and he was never going to let them go.


	4. Chapter 4

It was tour day today. The guys were all in their cage room getting things ready. Clay had yet to arrive, but he was due to be there soon. Jason had already gotten his things together and he was working on what Clay could need. Clay was cleared to fly. But he was not cleared to be on desk duty for another two weeks. For the past six weeks Clay had been getting better and better each day. He spent two weeks at Jason's place before Jason headed back to work and Clay went back to his apartment. When the guys weren't on an operation they were checking in on Clay and making sure he had everything he needed and how he was feeling. They were very relieved when Clay was able to be awake for more than a couple hours at a time two weeks ago. He still tired easily and had a long road to go, but they could finally see that he was on the road to recovery.

"When's the kid gonna get here?" Sonny asked.

"Doc just wanted to check him out first before he got on the plane. He's on base at the infirmary so he won't be much longer." Jason said.

They had driven in together, but Clay told Jason to focus on getting what he needed in order for the tour while he was at his check up. Jason reluctantly agreed to leave, he knew now was the time for him to be Bravo One and not a parent.

"He seem ok?" Trent asked.

"He's looking good. The bruising is gone, his concussion is gone and he is using his inhaler a lot less. He's hoping the Doc will tell him that his wrist is good to go. Trent, you got everything you need for him?"

"I have all of his TB medication that he'll need over the next three months. I also have extra inhalers and the Doc gave me some liquid antibiotic that we can keep cold and stored just in case something happens. He's covered."

"Good, we don't need any surprises with him." Sonny said.

The door to their room opened and everyone was expecting for Clay to walk in, but instead it was Beau, Derek and Full Metal.

"We got a problem Hayes." Beau said.

"Ya, you're in my cage room." Jason said with a smirk.

"Jace." Full Metal said in a tone that told Jason and everyone in the room all they needed to know. This was serious and it wasn't time for any jokes.

"What's going on?" Jason demanded.

"I just had to strip my rookie. This is his phone." Beau said, as he slid the phone over to Jason on the table as he continued. "There's a new page on the internal social media platform. I don't tend to go on it, but a lot of the younger guys do. My rookie was one of the new users on that specific page and he's been commenting on it."

"What is it?" Ray asked.

"It's a page dedicated to trash talking and cyber bullying Clay." Derek answered.

"It's a hate page, and they are hash tagging and tagging him in the posts." Full Metal added.

"What?" Sonny growled out.

"These posts are all about how he should never have been allowed in the Navy. That he should kill himself. All these absurbed bullshit rumors about how he's sleeping his way up to the top. How he is probably letting Lindell fuck him in the office." Jason said, as he scrolled through.

He was pissed, beyond pissed. How could someone, let alone thousands of someones trash talk Clay like this. Sure you might not like him or Ash, but to take it out on him like this was dishonorable and disgusting.

"You're on social media, you know anything about this shit?" Sonny demanded at Vic.

Vic held his hands up in surrender as he spoke. "I'm on it, but I don't pay much attention to anything that goes on within it. I just use it to keep in contact with my friends all over the country. You have to be invited to these pages, no one would invite me with being in Bravo."

"It's not his fault Son." Ray said, in Vic's defense.

"No, I know. Sorry." Sonny said, trying to get his emotions back under control.

"Who started it?" Trent demanded.

"It doesn't say. It's set up to be private and anonymous. You don't even have to use your name to make a comment, though lots are." Beau said.

"Jace, they've been calling him Autistic Gutter Baby. Someone, who didn't use their name, said that their father was the one to diagnose Clay in boot camp." Full Metal said with an edge to his voice.

"It's growing in followers every day, it won't be long before others start hearing about it. Now, I don't care about what Spenser's medical history is, he's a solid guy and operator, but there will be others that will care." Beau said.

"I'll speak with Lindell and get this shut down. See if Cyber can backtrack it to see who started it and maybe see who some of the followers are." Jason said, as he finally looked up from the phone.

He looked at his men and he could see the anger boiling in their eyes. It was one thing to have a problem with someone in their family, it was a whole other thing to be doing this. This was harassment, it was bullying of the worst kind because it was behind his back. They didn't even have the balls to confront Clay and say it to his face. They were cowards, all of them.

"Does he know?" Brock asked.

"They have him tagged in every post. He must know." Derek said.

"He would have told me." Jason instantly said.

"He doesn't have the app on his phone. He's got an account, but he doesn't go on it. Any notifications or messages get sent to an email that he almost never checks. Kid said he used to be on it a lot when he first started out to connect with other people, but now he doesn't ever use it. Everyone he cares about has his number." Sonny explained.

"Great, so he's got an email account with thousands of hate mail waiting for him to open." Full Metal grumbled.

"We gotta tell him Jace." Ray said.

"I know, we will when he gets in." Jason turned his attention to Beau once again. "Did your rookie say anything about this? Anyone else involved?"

"No, just that he heard about it through the grapevine. He wouldn't give anything up and he had no interest in talking once we kicked him out."

"We should talk with the other teams and see if any of our new rookies know anything about this." Derek suggested.

"You think Jackson knows something?" Full Metal asked.

"I don't know. He seemed cool with the kid, but everyone from Green Team seems to be pretty close with each other still, for the most part." Derek answered.

"You know anything?" Jason demanded at Vic.

"If I knew about this, I would have said something boss. I don't really talk with the others from Green Team. Maybe it was someone that didn't get picked for a team. I know Yoder was upset that he didn't get picked, maybe he blames Clay for it." Vic suggested. He needed them to get their attention focused on someone else, why not Yoder?

"I thought Yoder and Clay were friends?" Brock asked.

"Maybe they had a falling out and he's feeling bitter." Sonny suggested.

"We can talk to Clay about it and see." Ray said.

The door to the room opened and Clay walked in. The first thing he noticed was how many people were in the room and he couldn't help but wonder if something was going on.

"Ok, what's going on?" Clay asked.

"I'll go and speak with the others and see what they know." Beau said to Jason.

"Appreciate it."

Beau headed out and Clay kept his eyes on the others. He knew now for sure that something was going on, something that was bothering the others.

"What's going on?" Clay asked again.

Jason turned his attention to Clay, noticing the black brace still on his wrist briefly before he spoke. "Beau discovered something today and he was bringing it to our attention. Come sit."

"I'm fine." Clay said, as he moved closer.

"I can hear you breathing heavy from the walk over here. Come and sit, please son." Jason said with a calm and gentle voice.

The use of the word son told Clay that he wasn't in Bravo's cage room right now, he was in a room with his family. Something serious was going on, something bad must have happened. Clay walked over and sat down as he spoke.

"Who died?"

"No one, it's not like that. Beau's rookie, Smith, he just had his trident removed. Smith's been posting on an internal social media page that is dedicated to hating you."

"You're joking right? I mean I know there are people who don't like me because of my last name, but come on, someone actually went out of their way to create a social media page for it? What is there like ten whole people on it?"

Clay couldn't believe this, there was no way someone made a social media page about him. Yes, he came across people in the past that didn't like his last name, but after meeting him they tended to be ok with him. There was no way this existed. Jason handed Clay the phone and Clay looked down, everyone could see the shock on Clay's face when we saw the large number of posts and followers the page had. There were well over three thousand followers and just as many if not more posts all hating him.

"I don't even know these people." Clay said, as he scrolled through the posts to see some of the names that have been attached.

"I wouldn't take it personally kid, some people just like hating on others because they are miserable." Sonny said, hoping that Clay wouldn't take any of this personally.

"Who the hell started this?" Clay asked, looking up at them.

"We don't know, yet, but we will. I'm going to have Lindell looking into it to get it shut down and to see who started it." Jason answered, he was going to get to the bottom of this no matter what.

"Clay, we're wondering if it could have been Yoder." Ray started, but Clay just gave a chuckle to that.

"Somethin' funny?" Sonny asked.

"The fact that you think Yoder would ever do this. You guys couldn't be more off base."

"He did get past over, he could be having some hard feelings about it." Trent said.

"He doesn't. He joined Green Team knowing there was a good chance we wouldn't be on the same team. He's on Team Seven now and got to stay local, we see each other all the time. I've known him since my first day in Team Three, since I was nineteen. It would be like telling me one of you started this. He didn't do this, he doesn't know about it or he would have told me."

"You sure?" Jason asked.

"Completely." Clay said with full confidence as he looked right at Jason.

Jaso gave a nod. If Clay was sure, that was good enough for him. "We'll get to the bottom of this and put a stop to it. The best thing you can do is not obsess over it. You don't need to be reading this shit."

Jason took the phone back to stop Clay from reading it.

"You should delete your social media account so you don't keep getting emails about it too." Derek added.

Clay gave a nod and they could tell he was a little distracted by all of this. They couldn't blame him, they knew this was going to be a shock to him and it would take some time before he was able to move forward and get his mind wrapped around this. It wasn't something that was easy, but they were hoping they could get this page shut down and it would be over.

"I gotta get some paperwork done. You guys be safe out there." Derek said.

"Thanks Derek." Jason said on their behalf.

Derek gave Clay's shoulder a squeeze as he headed out.

"Listen to me kid, I don't want you to be thinking about all of this. It's just a bunch of pathetic idiots with nothing better to do with their time." Sonny said, trying to make Clay feel better about all of this.

"I know." Clay said, but none of them were convinced.

The problem was, they had to get ready to leave soon. They didn't have long before they had to be loading up on the plane. Jason figured Clay needed a few minutes to get his thoughts in order, then later on the plane he would talk this over with him again.

"Let's make sure everyone has their gear ready. Clay, I got yours all set for what you might need in HAVOC. Make sure you have whatever guns you want to bring though in case the base gets hit."

"Alright, let's get back to work, we're rolling out soon." Ray said, looking to get the others moving.

Jason picked up the phone and headed out for Lindell's office. He would also need to update Blackburn on this matter, but he could do that on the plane. He also wanted to talk to Lindell about the future of Bravo so he figured he might as well do that now. Jason knocked on the door and once he was granted permission entered. Lindell looked up and it was clear he wasn't expecting to see Jason here. They were due to spin up within the hour.

"Master Chief, should you not be getting ready to fly out?"

"We are almost all set. I was hoping to speak to you on an urgent and non-urgent matter Sir."

"Urgent first." Lindell said, as he pointed to the empty chair across from him.

Jason went over and handed Lindell Smith's cell phone as he sat down and spoke.

"That is the cell phone of Special Warfare Officer Smith from Charlie Team. It was brought to my attention from Beau that Smith is a part of an internal social media page that was created and dedicated to cyberbullying Spenser."

"What?" Lindell asked, clearly shocked by this.

"Spenser didn't know about it until a few moments ago. He's not active on it. There are thousands of followers and thousands of posts that are all hateful, cruel and down right dishonourable. The name they prefer to call him the most is Autistic Gutter Baby. They are posting and spreading rumors about how Spenser must have slept his way to his position. Even talking about ways he should kill himself." Jason was doing everything within his power to keep the anger out from his voice, but it was hard and his voice shook nonetheless.

"Do we know who started this page?" Lindell demanded.

"No, it was set as anonymous, some of the posts are as well. I was hoping you could have Cyber run it and see if you could discover who created it, or any information on the commenters. I would like to get this page shut down as well obviously."

"I'll handle it right away. I'll have them block it so no one else can post to it and see if we can determine any additional information. Please inform Spenser that I will personally see to it that this is dealt with. That I will not tolerate any bullying of any kind." Lindell said with a strength in his voice and Jason knew that Clay had a very powerful person on his side.

"I will. I appreciate it Sir, all of Bravo does."

"What is the non-urgent matter you wish to speak with me regarding?"

Jason wasn't sure if this would be too early, but he wanted some additional information so he knew how to proceed with the team. He was hoping Lindell would be able to provide him with that information.

"It's no surprise to you that eventually my time as B1 will come to an end. And with Ray going the Warrant Officer route he won't be able to take my place. I know there is a long list of other operators that could fill my spot, but I would like for it to go to Spenser. I'm just unsure of how that would be possible given his ranking and years of experience."

"In the political world Hayes, anything is possible. Spenser is the future of the Navy, he is what a large percentage of officials and upper brass want to shape the navy around. Young, driven, intelligent, highly skilled, he has the power to instill real changes. To influence and be a role model to many young kids and sailors. Placing him within a position that he can lead is the best thing for him and the Navy. Now, I would love for him to go Stat Twenty-One, but he has informed me that although he wishes to one day have the title of Admiral, he wants to earn it the traditional way. He feels like he needs to lead a team and grow more experience before he should be in a position to make changes to regulations. I respect that. Just as I respect that Bravo is his home, his family. There are exceptions to rules Hayes."

"Could his ranking be one of those exceptions?"

"It can be. Some of the requirements he would have to do. He would need to spend a term teaching Green Team, so six months. He is up for a Bronze Star with Valour for his efforts in Yemen and I have it under good authority he is going to be receiving it. With that medal and given the political mission he was just on, I can submit the paperwork to have him promoted up a level to Petty Officer. With that ranking and the Green Team training, he would be able to fill the role of Bravo One for when the time comes for it."

"That's great, I'll let him know about Green Team and we can figure out the best time for him to be doing that. Maybe after a tour he could spend the six months doing that so he doesn't miss out on a tour with us. I appreciate the information and your help with this."

"Spenser is very gifted, and I don't believe in holding someone back that is gifted. Though, there will be plenty of other operatives who will feel like they have earned and deserved the title more. Everyone likes someone that is gifted when they are helping to push you forward and making the teams look good. But when that person takes what you believe to be rightfully yours, it's a whole other game. You'll need to be careful if it gets around. There could be enemies right here on base and we don't even know it." Lindell warned.

"We'll keep an eye on it and make sure he's covered. The team and Alpha all know that Clay is the one to take over when my time comes. It won't be a shock to them. And if it happens while Ray is still in the team, he'll be a strong number two for Clay and help guide him through the transition. All of the guys will."

"I have no doubt about that. I'll get the wheels in motion and see when the next Green Team will be in that will work with your schedule, but I believe the next one is set to start in five months. If he doesn't take that one, it will be a year before the next one comes around. I would strongly suggest that he takes the first course just in case something happens. Without his Green Team Instructor Badge, he can't lead a team, that's not something we can get around."

"Understood, I'll let Clay know. He'll do it, he wants to lead Bravo one day and he knows he will need the instructor experience. I appreciate the support Sir."

"I am always happy to throw my support behind a good operative. Be safe out there and I'll see you when you get back."

"Thank-you Sir." Jason said, as he stood.

Jason headed out and made his way back to the cage room. He was glad that Lindell was going to handle the social media page and he was also throwing his support behind Clay taking over for Bravo. It was one less thing that he would need to worry about. He could talk to the team and let them know, make sure they were supportive of Clay being in the top spot. With that done he would then bring it up to Clay about what would happen moving forward. Jason saw that their cage room was empty, so he grabbed his bags and headed for the plane.

XXX

Once the plane leveled out Jason made his way over to the back of the plane where Clay had his hammock set up. He was sitting on a crate with his cell phone in his hand and Jason knew he would be scrolling through the emails. Jason went over and gently pulled Clay's cell phone from his hand as he sat down.

"Nothing good will come from reading these Sunshine."

"You know what's stupid? It shouldn't bother me, but it does. How can someone that I don't even know talking trash about me, bother me? It's stupid."

"It's not stupid, it's human nature Clay. You don't have to know these people to feel insulted by what they are saying about you. What they are saying is hurtful and bullshit and you don't deserve it. It's not stupid that this is bothering you, I would be worried if it wasn't. Lindell is going to handle it though and get it shut down."

"I just don't understand why someone would even create the page. What do they get out of it?"

"People like that just like to watch someone being hurt. Whoever created this page probably figured you would be getting the updates and they got pleasure in hurting you. But they're a coward, because they did this from behind a screen. I know it hurts right now, but the page will be shut down and these people will have no choice but to move on in their lives. We'll get the ones that we can and make sure they pay. Clay, I know it's hurtful, but you can't let this get to you. It's all just bullshit being spewed to hurt you. Your family, the ones who love you, we know what the truth is."

"I know you guys do. And I know it shouldn't bother me. It's just hateful people being pathetic. I guess I just didn't expect it and I don't know how I feel about people now knowing that I'm on the spectrum. I don't want to be known for being some token operative, like the only reason I even got here was because I fit some minority group that needed to be checked off."

"That's not why you are here at all and you know that. It's not even in your file. No one is going to ever think that you haven't fought and earned your spot here and if they do, fuck them. Their opinions don't matter. It hurts right now, but that hurt won't last long. You've been through a lot in your life, I know this isn't what is going to hold you back. Feel the hurt and then let it go by remembering that the people who know you and love you are right here and we're the only ones that matter."

Clay gave a nod and Jason knew that by the time they landed he would be ok again. Jason deleted the emails so Clay couldn't keep going through them before he handed the phone back. He then pulled Clay in for a hug, one Clay easily returned.

"I love you kid."

"I love you too dad."

After a moment Jason pulled back and spoke, "Get some sleep, your body is still healing."

"I will."

Clay was already feeling tired. His body was used to not moving around too much, just around his or Jason's apartment. He had been moving around a lot today all over base.

Jason headed back, but turned back around to speak once again. "I forgot to ask, the Doc, what did he say?"

"Oh, um I can take it off in two weeks if Trent clears it. I'm not healing as fast because of the TB." Clay said with a small shrug.

"Is that something that will always be a problem?" Jason asked, concerned.

"It shouldn't, the Doc said. Once the brace comes off I can do some strengthening exercises to get it back to full function again."

"Alright, I'll let Trent know he'll probably have some ideas for you. He's got all of your medication and extra cartridges too for your inhaler."

Clay gave a nod just as a yawn hit. Jason gave a small chuckle before he spoke. "Get some sleep Sunshine."

Jason headed over to the others as Clay got into his hammock. The others were already in a group just hanging out. It was still morning so none of them were tired yet. They had just finished discussing to see who wanted to play some poker.

"Hey Boss, you up for some poker?" Vic asked.

"Ya sure in a minute. I wanna talk to you guys about something first."

"Something wrong with the kid's hand?" Sonny asked, concerned this was about Clay.

"Not really, the Doc said he had to keep the brace on for two more weeks before he could remove it. Trent will have to check it out first to make sure it's all healed up. Apparently the TB is making him heal slower. The Doc also recommended some strengthening exercises."

"I'll check on it when we land later. I had a feeling the TB would slow things down." Trent said.

"Alright, but that's not what you wanted to talk about." Ray said.

"No, I want to talk about the future. As you guys know me and Ray have been trying to get things put into place for what the future of Bravo will look like. It's why we picked Vic over Yoder. We both felt like he would be a great number two and you all know that Clay will be taking my place."

"Kid makes the most sense for it. He's got your style and Ray's head." Full Metal commented.

"Ya, but aren't you planning for a time that you don't have a say in? I mean, even if you died tomorrow Spenser wouldn't be able to lead at his ranking. Even if you stepped down in five years it would go to someone else either on this team or another." Vic stated.

He wasn't sure how everyone just assumed that Clay would be the one to lead Bravo in the future. He wasn't even close to the ranking he needed to be leading a team, plus there were guys on other teams that had been doing this for twenty years that would get to throw their hat into the ring. Clay wouldn't get picked over them and their experience.

"Not anymore. I spoke with Lindell and with the new bronze medal with valour coming his way, plus his work on that political mission he is set for a promotion to Petty Officer. With taking the time off to be a Green Team instructor he will be allowed to take over as Bravo One." Jason explained.

"There's more than just those requirements though and he wouldn't be a Master Chief." Vic said, confused.

"Clay has a lot of connections and support within the upper brass. Lindell is confident that the other requirements can be overlooked. Eventually with time Clay will be promoted to Master Chief, but he won't have to be one to lead. He does have to do six months with Green Team and the next course starts in five months. I have to talk to the kid, but he'll be working as an instructor for the next class. I don't want to run the risk of us waiting too long and something happens."

"It'll suck not having him around for six months, but it will be good for him to get that training done so he can take over." Sonny said.

"And it is when we won't be on tour so we won't be a man down the whole time." Trent commented.

"I'm sure the kid will be fine with it." Ray said.

"He should be. I wanted to discuss how things are going to go once we get back from tour. Right now he can't be active until we get back home. Once we are back on missions I want to be using him more. I gotta get him trained, so if it's alright with you Ray, I'd like to switch you guys and have him as my B2 just strictly so I can train him."

The very last thing Jason wanted to do was upset or insult Ray. He was his best friend and his sounding board. He didn't want Ray thinking he was being replaced at all or demoted.

"Naw that's cool with me. It needed to happen at some point and it's not like you aren't still going to listen to me. The three of us are the ones that do most of the planning anyways. It's just a number brother. And it will let me focus more on getting Vic trained up too."

"Best way to train is to be working right under someone." Sonny commented.

"I'm also going to have missions where he'll lead as B1 and I'll be his B2. We'll all need to follow him and see what happens. Everyone makes mistakes, especially when leading a team in the beginning. I want those mistakes to happen while I'm still around to prevent something tragic from happening." Jason said.

"Best way to learn is by making mistakes and figuring out what not to do. If he can make those mistakes with someone there to help bail him out, he won't have so many shadows following him around." Full Metal agreed.

Most of the time when you become number one, you got there on experience and training. You worked up to it, but because you have that experience everyone assumes you know how to lead and what you are doing so no one is there to train you or to stop you from potentially killing your whole team. The way Jason was doing this was putting training wheels on Clay to teach him how to lead before taking the training wheels off. It was very much a fatherly thing to do, but it would make Clay stronger and a better leader faster in the end.

"The kid is solid, he'll crush it." Sonny said full of confidence in Clay.

"Did you think we wouldn't be ok with it?" Brock asked.

"I wanted to talk with you about it and make sure we were all on the same page. I didn't think anyone would have a problem with it, but I also wanted to make sure you trusted Clay with leading you."

The very last thing Jason wanted to do was put his team in an uncomfortable position. Yes, they cared for Clay and they relied on him with helping with strategies and being a solid support system to the team. That was different than taking orders from him. It would be hard and awkward at first, but Jason was hoping everyone will adapt to it fairly smoothly.

"We knew the kid was going to be taking over one day as B1. It's good that he can learn how to lead and what he needs to know while you are around to help him." Sonny said.

"He'll kill it." Trent added with confidence.

"Most teams don't get to think about what the future will look like, we got that chance I say we take it. We'd be stupid not to." Ray said.

"Alright. I'll talk to Clay about it later and let him know."

"Perfect, I'll get the cards." Sonny said, as he clapped and headed off.

The others couldn't help but smile and shake their heads. Leave it to Sonny to go from a serious conversation to fun and games. The others started to get things ready to play some poker. They couldn't do anything up in the air and with none of them being tired playing some poker was the perfect pass time.

XXX

Pulling into the base at J-Bad felt like home to them. They were so used to being here that they knew what to expect. They easily drove over to where the vehicles were kept and got out. Clay grabbed his two bags and started to head off for the bunkhouse. He didn't get two steps before someone was calling over to him.

"Hey Firecracker."

Clay smiled at seeing a more than welcomed face. It had been a while since he had been able to see Yoder with them on different schedules. He had no idea that Yoder was going to be here with his team.

"No way, you're on tour?"

"For the next two months."

Yoder pulled Clay in for a hug, one he easily returned. After a moment they pulled back and Yoder spoke.

"What happened to your hand?"

"Long story."

"It's a good thing I got nothing going on right now." Yoder said with a warm smile, as he took Clay's duffles from him and threw his left arm around his shoulders and they headed off.

"We still sure he couldn't be the one behind that page?" Sonny asked the others.

"Clay trusts him." Jason said.

"Ya, but sometimes it's the people closest to us that can hurt us the most." Ray pointed out.

"We'll keep an eye on him. He's here for two months so let's make the point in getting to know him." Jason said, not looking to eliminate anyone at this moment.

"The dessert is a good place to bury a body." Full Metal pointed out.

"We won't need to bury him, that page is a clear violation of the brotherhood. He'll be thrown out and PNG before he even touches down Stateside." Ray said.

The guys grabbed their gear and headed off for their quarters for the next three months. Yoder and Clay headed into the mess hall area to grab some lunch. Clay hadn't been eating too much with being sick so he just grabbed some fries and chicken fingers. Yoder guided them over to a place that was empty so they could talk without having to worry about being overheard. Once they sat down he spoke.

"What are you getting over?"

"What?" Clay asked, as he put salt on his fries and chicken fingers.

"You only eat chicken fingers when you are either still sick or just getting over being sick. And you always put extra salt on them to help your stomach and blood pressure." Yoder answered, as he grabbed the ketchup for his own fries.

"Technically I'm still sick."

"Part of that long story I take it." Yoder guessed.

"Ya it is."

"I guess you should start talking then."

Yoder and Clay had known each other for a very long time and Yoder knew when to push and when not to push with Clay. This was one of those times where if he didn't push, Clay would probably never tell him.

"It started off with a target elimination. I was the one to take the shot, but that put me out on a rooftop in the pouring rain for over thirty hours. I ended up with hypothermia from it. It was relatively mild, but it quickly turned into pneumonia."

"Shit, so you're just getting over it then. How did you hurt your wrist?"

"I'm still getting over the pneumonia, but because of the hypothermia it was severe. I had to be sedated for twenty-four hours and had both of my lungs drained. I was supposed to be on bed rest six weeks ago, but the mission we were set to go on couldn't wait. I can't talk much about it, but it was a political mission in Pakistan and my language skills were the only thing stopping a potential war from happening. I was in no shape to be going, but we didn't have a choice. After a very long day of negotiations I was able to get the General to agree to peace. The only problem was it relied on a General on our side agreeing to a five minute public beating."

"What? There's no way a General would agree to that." Yoder instantly said. He knew Generals were not the type of men that would easily stand around and get beaten. It went against their egos and pride.

"We thought he agreed. Only when we got there the next day we discovered that he reneged and because I did the negotiations I was grabbed and received the beating. I couldn't defend myself and honestly, I don't even know if I could have. I was really sick, I could barely breathe. I had to have an oxygen mask on me when I wasn't in negotiations. Trent had to give me a special drug that kept me awake, it was bad."

"And the team just let you take the beating?" Yoder asked.

He was pissed. He couldn't believe that the team let Clay get beaten, especially when he was so sick like he was. Clay was his friend, his kid brother and the team that was supposed to keep him safe, just stood around and allowed him to be beaten. It was bullshit.

"It wasn't like that. We didn't know, they didn't know. As far as any of us knew the General was going to take that beating, but something made him change his mind last minute. I was grabbed right from Jason's arms and pulled away. They had guns pointed at the team, and at me. They couldn't make a move without me being shot. They were pissed, still are, but D the only reason I am even here is because of what they did for me. I stopped breathing on the plane. Trent had to intubate me and insert a chest tube. The team, Alpha and both support teams had to breathe for me for twenty-two hours. I'm alive because of them D."

Yoder let out a sigh and closed his eyes for a moment. He couldn't believe that Clay, his brother, had come so close to death and he wasn't there to protect him once again. The whole reason he joined Green Team was so he could be there for Clay, so Manilla wouldn't happen again. It hurt to know that he failed his brother once again by not getting onto a team and by not being there when he needed him.

"I hate this." Yoder admitted.

"I know, but there wouldn't have been anything you could have done differently. Bad ops happen, you know that." Clay said with understanding in his voice.

"I know, but I used to be there for when they did. I hate that I'm not. How bad were your injuries?"

"My wrist was badly sprained, I had blood in my lungs, but no broken bones. I had a concussion and a lot of bruising. The Doc ran an MRI and bloodwork, he discovered that the blood in my lungs was actually from TB."

"Oh shit, it would have been dormant. I never even thought of that with you being in Africa."

Yoder was a trained medic and was the one they all relied on in Team Three. There had been plenty of times when Yoder had to repair Clay from one injury or illness. He never even thought that he could have TB from his time in Africa.

"I didn't either, or the Doc. I'm on the meds still to get rid of it and I'm almost cleared from the pneumonia. I'm just easily tired and I can't do much physically yet until my lungs have healed up. I can't be in the field this tour, but I have been cleared to work in HAVOC in two weeks. The Doc did find something else when he ran the MRI on my lungs."

"What?"

"Turns out my lungs are underdeveloped by about twenty-five percent. He thinks I was born around twenty-nine weeks. I also have some scarring on my lung tissue that is common with untreated asthma."

"The times your breathing was tighter in the heat. That makes sense. Is anyone going to give you shit about your lung size?"

"No, I've proven that I can handle being in the field."

"How bad is the asthma, do you need an inhaler with you?"

"It's not too bad, it's worse with the TB and pneumonia. I have an inhaler that I keep on me and Trent has extra cartridges. I'm getting used to it and the Doc thinks it'll be easier once my lungs are cleared up of everything."

"I'm sorry, I never thought to check for any of that."

"I didn't either. It's not your fault. The Doc caught it and now it's under control and we know about it. I'll be fine D."

Clay knew that Yoder was often worried about him, especially after his injury in Manilla. Yoder wasn't able to come up to see him because he was gone on tour himself. Clay still called him all the time and kept him updated on his recovery and when Clay was in a very dark place Yoder seemed to be the only one to bring him out of it. Clay was so excited when he found out that Yoder was going to be going into Green Team. He knew he would pass it and he was hoping that Jason would pick him over the others. It tore him up when Jason picked Vic over Yoder and Clay still felt like it was the wrong choice.

"How are you feeling with it all?"

"I'm tired mostly. I didn't eat much for the first few weeks and now I'm just getting back into eating again really. Still not really hungry and my meds for the TB can make me feel a little weird. Trent said it's normal, that it'll get easier as my body gets used to the meds and the TB gets smaller and smaller."

"It will get easier and by the time you are done tour you won't have to take them anymore. What about your wrist, when can you get the brace off?"

"Two weeks. I was hoping for it to be off today, but I'm not healing as fast with the TB. Trent can check it out in two weeks and if it's good then I'll get to take it off." Clay said with a small shrug.

Yoder gave a nod and Clay knew he wasn't too happy about all of this. He knew it would affect Yoder with him being injured and Yoder not being there to help him or to have protected him from it.

"How have you been? Any problems?" Clay asked, looking to change the topic.

"Nothing I can't handle."

"What's going on?" Clay pressed. He wasn't going to let Yoder get away with that crap.

Yoder let out a soft sigh before he spoke. "The guys found out I'm gay, they aren't taking it so well."

"What are they doing?"

Clay knew Yoder was gay from the first day he met him. He never cared about it, but he knew it was something Yoder was keeping on the down low. Him and Brian were the only ones within the team that knew he was gay. It wasn't that Yoder was ashamed of who he was or his boyfriends, the opposite, but he didn't want to deal with any of the bullshit that most military men had over homosexuality.

"They won't room with me and they are refusing to shower at the same time as me. They have comments here and there and they don't let me treat any of their injuries unless they are serious. And I am no longer invited for any of the team bonding. Just typical bullshit. It's fine."

"It's not fine. It's the twenty-first century, who gives a fuck if you are gay? It's fucking stupid." Clay said, pissed.

"The fact that you believe that is one of the reasons why I love you. It's also why you are one of the very few who feel that way. The team is only temporary anyways, I'll get placed on a Tier One team once a spot comes up. I'll make it work."

"I'm always going to be there for you D, always. And if you are rooming alone, that means I can crash with you." Clay said with a smirk.

"Why do you think your bags are already in my room." Yoder said with his own smirk back.

Clay gave Yoder a wink and Yoder laughed. They kept the rest of the conversation light while they ate. Once they were done they headed back to the room and Clay got to work on getting his things unpacked. The room had two single beds instead of bunk beds which was nice, they didn't have to deal with that. Yoder helped Clay get his things unpacked and once he was finished Clay laid down on his bed and kicked his boots off.

"You alright Firecracker?" Yoder asked, as he sat back on his bed and looked at Clay.

"I'm tired and I'm sick of being tired. I'm not used to not being able to move around or go for a run."

"You've always been crazy active. You'll get back to it soon. Each week that goes by your body will recover more and more. How's everything with the team?"

"Good. We ended up in Liberia before the attack. I went back to the house I grew up in, the team was there and Derek." Clay answered with a bit of pain still in his voice at the memory.

"Shit, how did they react?"

"They were pissed off at me at first. But I was still hypothermic and I left on my own. I knew Jace wouldn't let me go with being sick so I left while the team was out picking up some targets. Once they found out that I grew up in that house their anger went away. I told them about growing up and I got to say goodbye to Gramps and Grams. It was hard, but I think I needed it."

"You did need it. You finally got some closure, that's good Clay. The others aren't giving you a hard time about any of it?"

Yoder didn't know the guys, but just because Clay had been with them for three years didn't mean he was going to trust them. If he got to know them and saw how they interacted with Clay, then he might be able to trust them if he liked what he saw.

"No they were really good with it. I know you don't really know them, just what I've told you, but they do care and love me. Well not Vic, we're not at the like phase yet, let alone the love phase."

"I don't like him. I don't trust him. He's always given me a bad vibe and he comes across as so innocent and kind, but I've heard some of the shit he's said about other guys behind their backs. He's two-faced." Yoder warned.

"I don't trust him either, but the guys do. Ray seems to think he'll be a great number two to me, but I don't see it. I don't know, I just don't trust him. There's something about him, I don't know what it is. I just found out before getting on the plane that someone created an internal social media page dedicated to hating me."

"What?" Yoder asked with an edge to his voice.

"Yup, there are thousands of followers and even more comments about me and all the ways I should kill myself. Or how I must be sleeping my way to the top. They like to call me Autistic Gutter Baby, just endless posts of hate with me tagged in them. The rookie on Charlie was one of them and Beau kicked him out."

"Fucking assholes. What is anyone doing about it?"

"Lindell is getting Cyber to look into who started it and getting it shut down and identifying some of the anonymous users. I don't have the app on my phone, I never go on it, but it does get sent to my email. I checked the messages it started six weeks ago. That was after the mission I got hurt on, literally the second day I was in the hospital after getting beat up."

"That's one hell of a coincidence." Yoder said, skeptical.

"I know. The thing is, the General was in agreement to take the beating, but then all of a sudden he changed his mind. And he knew if he said no we would be going to war and maybe he wanted to start a war, but I can't help but think that someone told him I would be the one to get hurt if he said no. And I know that sounds paranoid, but then when I got Stateside, Ash showed up at the hospital, but the hospital never called him. So someone who knew I was there had to call him. Then the next day this social media page was created. It's probably just a bad string of luck, but I can't help but feel like someone is out to get me, but the only change in personal is Vic and Alpha's rookie Jackson."

"That doesn't sound paranoid at all. I think it's weird too, especially Ash. I don't really know Jackson too well, but I know he was a part of the admirers group."

"Admirers?" Clay asked, confused.

"You have the ability, as you know, to make people either like and respect you or hate you. Green Team was no different, though there were more admirers than haters. Jackson was one of them. You were called Baby Hayes to the admirers and they knew that fucking with you meant you fucked with Jason Hayes, and that was suicide. It was better to respect you then risk losing everything. Trust me it's a compliment. Jackson has been trying to get into Green Team and on a team for a few years, he's not about to throw all of that away by playing with fire."

"And Vic?"

"He rode the middle. It's why I say he's two-faced. He had no problem acting like he respected you and then turned around and joined in on the bashing by the others. I think you have a reason not to trust him."

"I don't know what to do about it. I keep thinking we just haven't clicked yet, that we'll click eventually. Me and Sonny didn't get along too great at first, but then we finally clicked and now we're best friends, or we used to be before Rebecca. Now I don't know what we are. I don't know, I just… I don't know." Clay said, sounding exhausted and overwhelmed by it all.

"It's not something you have to figure out right now. You're still sick and exhausted, you need some sleep. Give your mind a rest Firecracker." Yoder said warmly. He knew that when Clay was sick or rundown it made it harder on his mind.

Clay let out a soft sigh before he spoke. "Ya."

"I gotta go check in on some stuff, get some sleep."

Yoder got up and gave Clay's leg a pat as he headed out. He wanted to get some things organized with his gear before they were spun up and Clay needed some serious sleep to get healthy again. One thing Yoder did know, he was going to be keeping a closer eye on Vic while they were on base together.

XXX

Sonny walked into the team lounge house and saw that everyone was there getting situated. He noticed that Clay wasn't here and he was the one person he was looking for.

"Where is the kid?" Sonny asked.

"Thought he was with you." Ray said.

"He asleep already?" Jason asked.

"He's not in the room. His stuff isn't there either. I was all set to watch Clay and Vic fight for a bed and he's not even there."

They knew that the bunk house normally only had two rooms with one bed and then the other room had two bunk beds and a couch. Sure Clay would be getting a bed and Vic would be on the couch, but they also knew it would be funny to watch them wrestle it out.

"He went off with Yoder, he's probably bunking with him." Vic stated.

"He can't. Yoder is part of Team Seven, they have their own quarters. Clay is Bravo, he sleeps with us." Jason instantly said.

"Ya, but Yoder is an outsider with Team Seven, has been since they found out he was gay a month ago." Vic said with a shrug.

"How do you know that?" Trent asked.

"Some of the guys that were on Green Team know the guys on Team Seven, they told me. Yoder is probably bunking alone and Clay is crashing with him. Maybe they are more than just friends." Vic said.

"Are you trying to say that Clay is gay? He's got a girlfriend and even if he didn't he would have told me he liked guys." Sonny said in Clay's defense.

"Maybe he's bi-sexual and doesn't know how to tell you or is afraid of how you would react. It would make sense why Yoder was always talking about him in Green Team, I mean he was practically obsessed with Clay."

Vic knew that was a lie, but they wouldn't know that. If he could get them thinking that Yoder was the enemy then it would turn them away from him and he could do more things against Clay.

"Clay's not bi-sexual he would have told me. He knows he can tell me anything and there will never be any judgment. What do you mean by obsessed?" Jason asked.

Jason wasn't worried about Clay possibly being bi-sexual and keeping it a secret. If there was anyone Clay would have told it was him. He also knew for a fact that Clay would never jeopardize the team by trying to get Yoder on it if they were dating or fooling around. He was more concerned about what Yoder's intentions were with Clay.

"He was always talking about him, even when no one brought him up. They texted all the time and he would always make sure he saw Clay whenever he got the chance. He came across as obsessed with him. Apparently, the only reason he joined Green Team was to be with Clay."

"Oh hell no." Sonny automatically said.

"Seems like we need to talk with Yoder." Full Metal said with an edge to his voice.

"I can go find him if you want." Vic offered.

"Do it, we'll wait here." Jason said.

Vic headed out and Ray spoke. "Jace man we don't know what is going on. You can't just jump to conclusions or down Yoder's throat. Remember, he was almost on Bravo and is Clay's friend."

"Ya, but if he's trouble we have to say something. We have to find out what is going on." Sonny argued.

"I'm not saying we don't, I just think we shouldn't jump to conclusions." Ray said back.

"We won't, we're just gonna have a chat and see what the hell is going on." Jason said.

It was a few minutes later when Yoder walked into the lounge, but Vic wasn't there.

"Vic found you quick." Sonny commented.

"Didn't know he was looking for me. I was hoping to find you guys. I wanted to let you know that Clay was asleep in my room."

"And why would he be in your room, when he should be in the bunkhouse for Bravo." Jason asked, as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"For one, there are seven of you and only six beds. Someone was going to have to sleep somewhere else. Two, I have an extra bed in my bunkhouse, it made sense for Clay to crash with me." Yoder didn't see the big deal here. It wasn't like they were in different bases, they were basically next to each other.

"You know Clay isn't gay or into men right?" Sonny said.

"I've walked in on him having sex a few times when we lived together. I am well aware of his sexual preference. Not sure how that relates to this conversation though." Yoder said with a slight attitude to his voice.

"It relates because you are gay and apparently obsessed with him. Did you join Green Team for Clay?" Sonny challenged.

"Yes, I am gay, no I'm not obsessed with him and yes I joined Green Team for him. I don't appreciate the way you are making these assumptions about me. And I don't appreciate now having to lie to Clay by pretending like this conversation never happened. Because if he found out how you are reacting and the assumptions you are making based on me being gay, that will be the end of whatever friendhship you have with him."

"Oh really?" Sonny said, as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yes really. He doesn't tolerate ignorance or stupidity where sexuality is concerned. If you have a question, then ask me but drop the attitude and stupid assumptions about what my relationship is like with Clay. You know nothing about me or what we have been through together."

"Alright, let's just calm down here. We all care about Clay and don't want to see him hurt. I think emotions are running high right now because of what we just found out before we left." Ray started, he was not looking to have a huge blowout, because if Clay did care about Yoder the last thing the team needed was Clay pissed with them or Sonny for getting into a fight.

"We're a little over protective of Clay right now after what happened on our last mission. We don't like him far from our sight." Trent added to try and explain to Yoder.

"I get that. But I'm not the enemy either. I've known Clay for eight years, you've been brothers for three, I've been his brother for eight. Clay is safe with me."

"Then why is Vic telling us how you were obsessed with Clay in Green Team?" Full Metal challenged.

"If Vic is where you are getting information from, then you're in trouble. Vic is a snake in the grass. He had no problem praising Clay to the right instructors and cadets and then trashing him to the others. Vic is two-faced and all he cares about is being the best."

"What are you talking about?" Jason asked. He knew that Clay didn't fully trust Vic, but that could be related to Vic being the new guy on the team. If Yoder had seen something different Jason wasn't going to be an idiot and ignore it.

"Vic made it clear that he was going to be on Bravo one day, that was his goal. But it wasn't to play second fiddle for anyone. He wants to lead, not play a supporting role to anyone, but especially Clay. He was very vocal about how he felt like Clay should never have even been allowed to be in Green Team until he was more experienced like everyone else. And that was the nicest thing he said about him. He won't settle for being number two, especially to Clay. You didn't pick me fine, it's your team, but you let a wolf walk right into your henhouse and he won't think twice before eating Clay the first chance he gets." Yoder warned.

"You and Vic don't like each other, I take it." Trent commented.

"Not in the least. You can't like someone that you've never actually seen. Vic plays whatever role he has to if it gets him what he wants. He knew that me and Clay were close so he avoided me as much as possible."

"You said you joined Green Team for Clay, if it's not because you have the hots for him, then why did you?" Sonny asked this time, still keeping the edge to his voice.

"Son." Jason warned.

"I met Clay when he was nineteen. He was fresh out of Buds, he hadn't even been on a mission before because he was picked right out of boot camp to go into Buds. Him and Brian were placed on Team Three. Brain had it easier, he was twenty-two like me and it was easier for the guys to accept him. It didn't matter that he was green too, he was old enough to drink and he was social. He fit their opinion of what makes a Seal a Seal. Clay didn't." Yoder started.

"Meaning?" Jason asked.

"Clay's smart, he can blend in a lot better now but when he was nineteen he couldn't. And it didn't help that he wasn't old enough to drink. I had a cousin, he had high functioning autism, but his social skills were non-existent. He didn't care to learn them, didn't understand the point of them. He was twenty when one night he was walking down the street and a group of gang members walked by him. The one bumped into him and demanded an apology. My cousin didn't even see how dangerous the situation was. They beat him to death in a side alley. They were so brutal that you couldn't even recognize him. After the first conversation with Clay, I knew."

"You knew he hit the spectrum." Jason stated with a bit of understanding.

"I did, I knew he wasn't as far on it as my cousin, but he was kissing it if nothing else. Brian had been trying and from what I heard Clay had come a long way, but he still had a long way to go. I was taking him to where he could keep his stuff and once we got there the very first thing he said to me was if I was sleeping with this other guy on one of the other teams." Yoder gave a genuine smile at the memory before he spoke. "We walked by each other on the way to the cage room and he saw the quick look we gave each other. When I hesitated he told me he didn't care, he just wanted to know if it was a secret. I said it was and he said he wouldn't tell anyone. Then he proceeded to ask me if I was a top or a bottom and quickly explained how anal sex was beneficial to your mental and emotional health with scientific reasons to back it." Yoder chuckled at the memory "That's how I knew he was a good man. It's one thing to be ok with someone being gay, with a teammate being gay, and another to willingly talking about it and asking questions."

Jason went and sat down on one of the stools at the island as he spoke. "He is a good man, and he wouldn't care about something as simple as you being gay. Clay's not like that. You guys got close." Jason nodded for one of the stools to offer Yoder a place to sit. He had to be careful here, he wanted to be protective of Clay, but he also had to remember that this was one of Clay's friends and he didn't want to hurt or upset Clay by insulting or being disrespectful to his friend.

Yoder spoke as he sat down. "We did. The other guys, they didn't like Clay or respect him, but they had no problem using his skills when it benefited them. They would go out of their way to make sure Clay knew he wasn't one of them. They would have team meetings at bars or clubs knowing Clay wasn't old enough to go. They would have nothing but beer on the plane and would tease Clay about children not drinking. It was just little shit like that, but it was enough for Clay to feel like he didn't belong. He constantly felt like he had to prove himself, even if it put his own life on the line. Whenever they needed someone with his language skills, it didn't matter how dangerous the mission was Clay always said ok. Eventually they respected his skills, but they still made sure he knew he wasn't one of them. Brian and me were the ones that got attached to Clay. He was our kid brother. Me and Brian though, we were just friends, we didn't have that deep connection, but we had Clay. He was our glue."

"He's got a way of getting under your skin." Sonny agreed.

"Ya he does. He's come a long way. He worked his ass off to make sure he could pass for normal as he likes to say. He started to make a pretty impressive name for himself with what he could do. The guys started to respect his skills, started to ask him for strategy advice and in the field they would listen to him. It didn't take long before he was moving up in the team. By the time he was twenty-three he was leading missions. Brian and me though, we knew he wanted to be a Tier One Operator and when the opportunity came up for him he took it, but we didn't want him going alone. It wasn't that he couldn't handle it, he could, but we didn't want him going without one of us watching his six. I never wanted to be a Tier One operator and Brian didn't care either way. He decided he would go and I stayed in with Team Three. It killed me to say goodbye to him, but I knew he would be safe with Brian looking out for him. When I found out that Brian died I was devastated, but I was on tour so I couldn't go and be there for Clay. When I found out he was on Bravo, the best team in DEVGRU, I was hoping that would mean he would be safer. That he would have some brothers watching his back."

"He does." Ray stated.

"I know he does. He told me all about you guys. I know he's happy here."

"If you never wanted to be in DEVGRU, why go to Green Team?" Brock asked.

"You did it for Clay." Jason easily stated.

"He called me from the hospital after Manilla and told me what happened. I was on tour and then constantly spun up, I couldn't come down to see him. But we talked almost every day. He was in a pretty dark place, one I wasn't too sure he would get out of. I was tired of not being there for him. I was tired of not being there when he was injured or sick. I was tired of not being there for him after a hard mission. Phone calls weren't enough. I wanted to be on the same team as him again and in order to do that I had to pass Green Team."

"But you had to know there was a chance you wouldn't get placed on Bravo." Full Metal said. Just because you pass Green Team doesn't mean you got on a team. There were only so many openings every time.

"I knew I would eventually, and I would be able to be in Virginia at least. Clay and me will be on a team together again one day. He'll take over eventually." Yoder said with pure confidence.

"But you didn't want to be in DEVGRU, why go through it just to be on the team with Clay? Weren't you in a position to lead in Team Three?" Sonny asked.

"I could have led my own team ya. But leading isn't what I want to do. I will if I need to, but it's not a goal that I have. There are different types of people in the world. Some are meant to be leaders, others are meant to work in a supportive role, others are meant to follow and some are meant to destroy. I've never wanted to be the leader, the one that has to have all of the answers and carry the heaviest burdens. Until I met Clay, I thought I would be happy being a follower, one of the guys, but Clay changed that for me. Anyone who took the time to get to know Clay knew that he was born to lead. He's too smart and too good not to be a leader. He was going to lead the team and I was going to be the best number two he could have asked for. I was going to be whatever he needed. It's why I became a medic, it was one more way I could keep him safe. I learned Pashtu and Arabic so I would know if a threat was around us. I was going to keep him safe, keep him healthy so he could keep us all safe."

Jason could see how serious and sincere Yoder was. This wasn't a man that was a threat to Clay, to his son. This man clearly cared for Clay and was ready to do battle just to protect him. He changed the direction of his career so he could be there for Clay and watch his back. Jason wasn't getting an obsessed vibe from Yoder. He was concerned though with what he had to say about Vic. It was something he was going to be keeping an eye on and see what happens. He wasn't going to tolerate anyone being a threat to Clay.

"Clay's lucky to have a friend like you. I heard your teammates aren't too happy with you being gay." Jason said.

"It's nothing I can't handle. It'll blow over soon and in the meantime I get to enjoy a room all to myself."

The others could tell that Yoder was just trying to make the situation lighter. It bothered him, it was human nature for it to.

"Anyone gives you any shit you just let me know. I'll handle it. You being gay doesn't change how well you can do the job and shoot." Jason said.

"I appreciate that."

"I'm sorry we jumped you like that. We're protective of Clay and a bit more recently with what has happened."

"Ya Clay told me about the last couple of missions and the social media page." Yoder said with understanding.

"He told you about that? When?" Sonny asked, still not sure about Yoder.

"Today while we ate lunch."

"You got him to eat? What did he eat?" Trent asked. They had been having a harder time getting Clay to eat with the medications that he was on. He was also more tired and rundown still so he wasn't too into eating.

"What he always eats when he doesn't feel well."

"Which is?" Trent pressed.

"Chicken fingers and fries. You don't know that?" Yoder would have figured with being the team medic that Trent would know that about Clay.

"No, he's never said anything. We normally get soup in him, but the medication for the TB is making him feel off."

"Chicken fingers and fries usually does it. He'll put extra salt on it to help his stomach. The trick is he won't go out of his way to get it. When he doesn't feel great he'll veg around and not really go out."

"Kinda weird for a grown man to eat chicken fingers." Full Metal commented.

"That would be my fault. Three months into being with the team he had a terrible case of bronchitis, it took him down for almost a month. Now that I know about his lungs it makes sense why it hit him so hard. He was exhausted all the time, he had no interest in food and he didn't feel too great from coughing so much. I brought him some chicken fingers and fries and he actually ate it. It was the first time he had ever had them. Ever since it's what I would bring him when he was sick and not eating much."

"I bet there were a lot of things he had never had before or done when you got him." Sonny said.

"Oh ya, me and Brian made a point of getting him to try a bunch of firsts. Some things made sense, but then others it was crazy. He had never had pizza before or ice cream. We knew he grew up in Africa, but we didn't realise what that would mean for him. He couldn't even drive, we taught him on base with a humvee. Told him if he could drive it he could drive anything." Yoder said with a big smile at the memory.

"I didn't even think about him not knowing how to drive. He's lucky he had you and Brian in his life." Ray said warmly.

"We were lucky to have him. He's one of a kind and very special." Yoder said warmly.

That was something they could all agree on. Once Clay got under your skin he was impossible to get rid of. Unfortunately, that went the other way too for those that didn't like him.

"What quarters are you in?" Jason asked.

"C2."

"And you are aware of his health condition right now?"

"I am, he told me all about it."

"Alright, he can crash with you. But if you notice anything let me know and talk with Trent if there is anything medically going on. You've known him longer, but with his allergy to phosphate we can't be too careful with what he takes." Jason said.

"I know, who do you think gave your doc that list of approved medication?" Yoder said with a smirk.

"I appreciated that list. I didn't know it came from you." Trent said.

"Can't risk him being given something that could kill him. I've told him for years he needs a medical alert bracelet, but he won't do it."

"That is something we should be pressing for." Trent said to Jason.

"Order one for him that you think he needs, I'll make sure he wears it." Jason agreed.

Trent gave a nod and Yoder stood up. "I have some things I have to get organized before I get spun up. I appreciate you talking with me."

"You ever need to talk, we'll be here." Jason offered.

Yoder just gave a nod and headed out. Sonny didn't even waste a second before he spoke. "You sure it's a good idea to have Clay sleeping with him?"

"He was sincere Son, Clay's a little brother to him. I'm not about to piss Clay off or have him push us away because we insulted his brother. I'd rather have his relationship with Yoder where I can see it versus him hiding it." Jason answered.

"Agreed. The last thing we need is Clay hiding something from us like this. And Yoder seems like a good guy that cares about him." Ray agreed.

"What about what he said about Vic?" Brock asked.

"I think it's clear the two don't like each other. We'll keep an eye on Vic and make sure he isn't talking trash about Clay. All we can do is wait and see on that one." Jason answered.

"Fine, but I'm still watching both of them." Sonny said.

"You wouldn't be the kid's best friend if you didn't." Ray said with a smirk.

"For now, let's leave it alone. The kid is asleep and he ate something real at least. Let's get settled in and we can check on him later." Jason said.

The others agreed and they all started to go their own ways to get their things set up and ready. Ray hung back for a second with Jason, as he could tell something was spinning in his head.

"What is it?" Ray asked once they were alone.

"I'm wondering if we made the wrong choice. If I made the wrong choice." Jason admitted.

"You think we should have gone with Yoder over Vic. I don't know Jace, I think Vic will be a good contrast to Clay. You needed someone like me."

"I know, but I picked you to be my number two. You weren't picked for me. We clicked right away and we built something from that. Clay didn't pick Vic, he never would have. And there is nothing saying he has to pick him when he's in charge of Bravo. I mean, Clay is a lot like me, but he's also a lot like you. Maybe he needs someone that can be whatever he needs. Someone that understands him and knows when to push and when to be a silent support."

"Clay is different, but I still think that Vic will be a solid number two. Yeah he might not be who Clay would pick, but isn't that the point? He needs someone that is opposite to him, not someone that will go along with everything he says or does because he's his friend. Vic will challenge Clay's calls, he'll tell him no when he needs to hear it. That's important to keep Clay in line."

"I'm not sure how much in line Clay needs to be kept in. I know you've taken to Vic and have brought him under your wing, I'm just not sure it was the right call to make."

"All we can really do right now is wait and see Jace. Clay and Vic will need to come to some sort of common ground and get along. They don't have to be best friends, but to be on the same team they have to at least get along and respect each other. It's not just Vic that has to work on that. Clay isn't giving him much of a chance on and off the field."

"Clay takes a bit to get used to someone and let them in, you know that. Look how long it took for him to get used to us and let us into his walls. Clay isn't the new guy, Vic is and it's on him to try and figure out how to start building that trust with Clay."

"Aren't you being a little bit biased there Jace? I know Clay is your kid, but you can't make excuses for him either or put all of that on Vic. Clay's a big boy, he can make an effort too. It's not just on Vic to get to know him. Clay's got a responsibility of being one of the guys on the team and as the previous rookie to make Vic feel welcomed."

That was one of the issues that Ray had with Jason and Clay being so close. It seemed like Jason was letting Clay get away with things he never would have if Clay was just another guy on the team.

"No one showed Clay the ropes or went out of their way to make him feel welcomed. He had to earn his place and so does Vic. If he earns Clay's trust, then he will have fought and deserved it. I can't force Clay to get close to someone or trust someone blindly. He needs to do it himself, you know that."

Ray gave a nod, he wasn't going to win this round and there was no point in pushing Jason on it. Clay and Vic were going to have to work things out on their own and hopefully soon before something bad happened on an opt. Ray was hoping with them being on tour maybe the downtime together would be good for them all. He was hoping at least.

XXX

It had been a couple of days since Clay had arrived for tour. The past couple of days had been uneventful, but it was still weird for Clay. He was used to being with the team anxiously awaiting for the order to go out and fight. Only this time around he was going to be stuck in HAVOC watching his team going out there. Clay was also going to be keeping an eye on Team Seven when they went out. He wanted to make sure that Yoder was safe and returned back as well. He was on his way to meet up with the guys in the team lounge. He was walking by a supply room when he heard a loud bang, like something falling over. Clay opened the door and walked in. The lights were off, which was weird.

"Hello?" Clay called out, as he turned the lights on.

Everything happened all at once. The door closed, a loud obnoxious music started to play to a deafening level and all around him there were strobe lights making the whole room flash at a rapid pace. It was overwhelming on his mind and Clay instantly ran for the door, only to discover that there was no handle on the inside. He was trapped in the room. Clay moved his hand along the wall to try and find the light switch that had started all of this, he flicked it off, but the lights and music didn't stop. Clay stumbled around the small room looking for a way out, but the only option was the single door in the room. He could feel his mind starting to struggle with the stimuli that was coming at him in all directions. He had gone through this before, not this exact situation, but he had been overloaded before. He knew the signs and normally he could fight it off, but today he couldn't seem to block it out. He could feel his chest getting tighter and it was harder to breathe.

Yoder was sitting around outside when he heard this obnoxious music coming out of nowhere. He turned his head to see where it was coming from and how to turn it off. It was in the afternoon and most people were up, but still there were teams that had night duty and were asleep during the day. It was common courtesy to not blare music on base so if anyone was asleep they could stay that way. Yoder got up and headed towards the music. He saw the guys on Bravo walking towards where the music was coming from as well.

"What the hell is that shit?" Sonny complained.

"I don't know, but whoever is blaring it I'm going to kill em." Full Metal said.

They came up to the storage room and Jason opened the door. They were all instantly hit with the music and lights going on in the room. Jason had to back up for a second because of how strong it was on his own senses. He hit the light switch, but it didn't do anything. It was in between the flicker lights that Jason saw that Clay was in the middle of it all. Jason couldn't really see or hear Clay all the well, but he could tell that something was wrong. He reached in and pulled Clay out of the room and it was then that they all noticed he was having a very hard time breathing.

"What the hell is going on?" Sonny demanded.

"Shit." Yoder said he knew what was happening.

He grabbed Clay right from Jason's arms and quickly took him away to their room, which was thankfully only a few spots down. The others followed and once in the room Ray turned the light on as Jason spoke.

"What the hell is going on?"

"Turn the light off, shut the door and shut up." Yoder demanded.

Everyone was shocked at how Yoder just spoke to them. However, Brock closed the door and turned off the light. The room was dark, but you could still make out the other people in the room. Yoder pulled Clay into his arms with Clay's back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around Clay tight to hold him still and everyone could see Clay struggling to breathe. He was suffering from some type of an attack that had to have been triggered by the room. Jason remembered Clay telling him that when he first got to the States he would have moments where it was hard to breathe. In the extensive research that Jason had done since discovering that Clay was kissing the spectrum, it had talked about how his senses could be overpowered by large stimuli coming at him in all directions. That room was set up to hurt Clay. The music and the lights hitting him would have been too much for his mind to handle.

Vic was doing everything in his power to keep his face neutral. He couldn't believe how well his stunt had worked. He knew there were guys on base that were commenting about Clay and hated him. It didn't take much of anything to get them to help him with what he needed. He had even made sure there was a camera in the room that could record the whole thing so it could be uploaded to the social media page. It was a perfect way to show how pathetic and weak Clay truly was.

They all stood there and watched as Yoder, someone that wasn't them, comforted and calmed their brother. They could see Yoder whispering into Clay's ear, but they couldn't hear what he was saying. What they could see is that it was working on calming Clay down. His breathing started to relax and not become so hard. The tremble that had overtaken his body was starting to turn into a more subtle tremble. Clay let out a shaky breath as he leaned his head back against Yoder's shoulder. He moved his hand and placed it on Yoder's arm that was still wrapped around him. Clay looked exhausted, but he seemed to be back with them.

"I got you brother." Yoder said.

"Shit. It's been years." Clay's voice was shaky and weak from his attack.

"Your body is exhausted and rundown, it only makes sense that your mind will be too. You've been through a lot in the past couple of months. You also haven't been in a club in six years."

Jason moved so he was closer to Clay and he would be able to see him.

"You ok son?"

"I'll be ok. I just need some sleep to reset."

They could hear and see just how tired Clay was all of a sudden. Like his whole body had just gotten drained.

"What happened Sunshine?" Jason asked. He knew Clay needed some sleep, but he wanted to know what happened first so he could handle it.

"I don't know. I was walking by when I heard this loud bang. I thought maybe someone was in there and maybe needed help. The light was off and when I flicked the switch all of this music and flashing lights started to go off. The door was closed, but there was no handle on the inside and when I hit the light switch again, nothing happened."

"Ok, we'll look into it. You need to rest to feel better." Jason said, as Clay was fighting to keep his eyes open.

Yoder helped to get Clay down and into his bed as he spoke. "I'll stay with him."

Jason reached down and placed his hand against Clay's cheek and rubbed his thumb back and forth. "Get some sleep Sunshine."

Clay gave a small nod as his eyes fell closed. They knew it wouldn't be long before he was sound asleep.

"Anything happens, call me." Jason said.

"I will." Yoder promised. Jason had given him his phone number a couple of days ago in case something happened with Clay.

The guys all headed out and made their way back to the room to try and get the shit turned off. Sonny was the first one to speak.

"Someone has a sick idea of a joke."

"This wasn't meant as a joke." Jason said, letting the anger show in his voice.

"You think someone targeted the kid? Kinda hard to do, they didn't know he would have an issue with it." Full Metal said.

"After Clay told me about hitting the spectrum I did some research. You can invoke an attack if you over stimulate someone's mind. The loud music, flashing lights all around him and being trapped in here. It would be enough to push his mind over the edge and cause an attack." Jason explained as he walked around the room, doing his best to ignore the music and lights.

They had to be plugged in somewhere, they just needed to figure out where. Even being in this room Jason was having a hard time with it all. It was too loud and the lights were really bothering his eyes. He couldn't imagine how hard it must have been for Clay to be in here even if it was for a few minutes.

"So they targeted him, someone that must be a part of the social media page to know he was on the spectrum. They planned this." Ray said, pissed as well.

"Someone had to have helped this person though. He didn't just happen to get all of these lights, remove the handle and get the music in here. It's gotta be at least a two person job and one of those people had to have access to the supplies." Trent said.

"We're gonna need to look at everyone that has access to these types of supplies and see if we can find who set this up. This type of behaviour, it's an attack against the brotherhood, they could be sent to the reform camp for this." Ray said.

"Ya, but maybe it was just a prank and wasn't meant for anyone in particular. I mean how could they have known that Clay was going to be the one to walk by the room and hear a bang?" Vic argued.

He didn't need anyone to point the finger back at him, he was confident no one would, but at the same time he didn't want anyone to get in trouble for it. You could easily call this a prank that Bravo was taking too personally. It was why they set it up this way.

"Prank or not, they took it too far. And I doubt this wasn't directed to the general public. This wouldn't have bothered someone like it would Clay. Annoying, but it wouldn't cause a reaction." Ray said.

Jason finally found the plug buried underneath the shelving unit behind some boxes. It wasn't in a place where Clay would have been able to find. With the plug pulled everything stopped and they were finally in silence again.

"Grab the equipment and I'll go ask around and see who knows what. Loop in Lisa, maybe she can figure out where this stuff came from. I'll let Blackburn know too." Jason ordered.

The others gave a nod and they all got to work. Whoever had done this to their brother was not going to go unpunished, no matter what they had to do. What they didn't know though, was that this was only just the beginning.

XXX

They were all sitting out by the fire that night. Clay had been resting for the rest of the day to try and get his mind back in order after his attack. The others were still worried about him, they had never seen Clay go through that before and if it hadn't been for Yoder, they wouldn't have known what to do. It was made very clear to them that Yoder did love Clay like a little brother and there was no way he would ever do or say anything that would hurt Clay like that social media page. Tonight Clay was sitting next to Yoder to his right and Sonny on his left, what was different though was the small laptop in Clay's lap. He was typing on it while keeping up with the conversation going on around the firepit. It was different though, because the guys were not used to seeing Clay working on a laptop. He was normally reading or just relaxing.

"Where's the Rookie?" Full Metal asked.

"He went to bed, he was feeling a little jetlagged." Ray answered.

"What are you doing over there?" Sonny asked, as he leaned over to try and see what Clay was working on.

Clay turned the laptop away from him so he couldn't see it as he spoke. "Nothing."

"Seems like something." Trent said with a smirk.

"Are you working on number two?" Yoder asked, as he leaned over to try and see the screen.

Clay closed the laptop as he spoke. "Yes, but you have to wait like everyone else. No peeking."

"What are you talking about?" Jason asked.

"It's nothing, really." Clay said, not really wanting to share.

"I wouldn't say it's nothing. It's good that you're gonna keep going with it. But why don't they know?" Yoder asked.

"Because they will tease and I don't need to hear teasing for the rest of my life." Clay simply said.

"Since when do we tease?" Sonny said, slightly offended.

"Really?" Clay said with a smirk.

"Ok fine, but we've never teased about important stuff." Sonny argued back.

"Come on Sunshine, we promise not to tease. What are you working on?" Jason tried.

Clay let out a sigh before he spoke. "Alright fine, but this doesn't leave the circle, I mean it."

When everyone gave him a nod Clay continued. "I wrote a book about six months ago."

"You wrote a book?" Sonny asked, surprised.

"About what?" Full Metal asked.

"How do we not know you wrote a book?" Jason added.

"I wrote it in a pen name so no one could connect it to me. And it's a fictional book."

"Fictional, wasn't expecting that. I thought it would be some political foreign country book." Ray said, surprised that Clay would be writing something in the more creative category.

"No, definitely not."

"What's it about?" Brock asked.

"It's about a military special ops team and it follows them through missions, the brotherhood and finding love. It was just supposed to be one book, but it did so well that I decided to write a sequel to it and turn it into a series where each book would focus on one of the guys. And before you ask, no I've never written about one of our ops."

"We assumed you wouldn't have. The book did good?" Jason asked.

"It did amazing. He's been on the New York Times Bestseller's list for the past few months." Yoder said with a proud smile.

"Serious? Clay that's huge man." Ray said proudly.

"It was unexpected." Clay said.

"What made you get started?" Sonny asked.

Clay let out a soft sigh before he spoke. "You guys know about growing up, but once I learned how to read I read everything. Whenever the gunfire got too loud or I got scared I could pick up a book and escape into that world. After my grandparents' death I would spend days curled up reading one book after the other. It was the only way I could escape from all of the death, the bombs and gunfire, the fear. I was safe in whatever world the book created. I still read different novels when I need that escape. I wanted to create a world that someone else could escape into. A world where even though bad things happen and people go through hard times, they still come out stronger and can find love and their happily ever after. I didn't create the book in hopes of making lots of money. I created it with the hope that I could give someone else the escape they need."

"That's the best reason to make a book. Good for you Sunshine." Jason said warmly.

"That's really cool kid, but you do know we now need to know what the book is called so we can read it right?" Sonny said.

Clay playfully rolled his eyes. "It's called A Healing Love by Spenser Quinn."

"Quinn eh? I like that." Sonny said proudly.

"Ya I thought you would." Clay said with a small chuckle.

"Gonna have to check it out. Can't have a book out there by you that I haven't read." Sonny said.

"It's good. I'm excited for the next book. I was hoping you were going to make another one." Yoder said with a smile.

Clay's phone beeped and he pulled it out to see a new email. He couldn't help but have a huge smile on his face at what he read.

"You got a nude on there?" Trent teased.

"No, email. I had put a bid in for a house and it was accepted. I own a house." Clay said as he emailed his real estate agent back.

"Congrats. I didn't know you were looking to purchase." Jason said.

"I've had my eye on a few properties, but when this one came up for sale I decided to take the chance and see. It's amazing, it's literally right on the water. The backyard is the beach. It's down on Sandfiddler Road."

Sonny whistled before he spoke. "Damn, those are nice houses. How the hell did you afford one of those?"

"Book sales are good so that covered a good chunk of it."

"How many bedrooms?" Ray asked.

"Six beds and four baths. I got pics if you want."

The guys all moved over so they could check it out on Clay's phone. They couldn't believe how amazing the place looked. Not only was the ocean his backyard, but in the side yard there was also a pool. It was amazing and just perfect for a family. They all knew there would be more family barbecues at Clay's place over the others.

"Clay man, that place is gorgeous. We gotta have a housewarming party when you move in." Ray said.

"Definitely." Clay easily agreed.

"Why so big?" Full Metal asked, as they sat back down.

"The future. One day when I get married and have some kids it will be a place they can grow up in and eventually end up with themselves. I wanted to purchase a home that could be kept in the family."

"Well, that place looks amazing and I can't wait until we can see it in person." Sonny said.

"Ya, it's gonna be pretty sweet to hang out there. Cerb will love being able to be in that much open space out back and the ocean." Brock said.

"It's a great place brother." Yoder agreed.

"Now I just need to get ready to move in when we get back. I'll have to put my notice in from here for the apartment. Time it right so that first weekend we get back I can move into the house."

"Well, we're all here to help, it'll make the move go faster." Trent said.

"Appreciate it. The house came furnished and all so I won't have to worry about buying a bunch of furniture. I'll have to figure out what I want to take and what to donate when we get back from my apartment. I can't believe I got it, I thought for sure I would be out bid." Clay said, still amazed that he was able to get the house.

"Must be meant to be." Yoder said with a warm smile.

"Must be." Clay said with a smile back.

He had missed being able to spend the time like this with Yoder. He was really happy that they were able to be on tour together for the first month. It had been a few years since they were able to spend any real time together and Clay was loving it. He had missed Yoder a lot over the last three years. It seemed like things were falling into place for Clay. He now had his dream home, he was working on his second book, after his first book was so successful. He had no idea that this tour was going to be the end of a normal life in Bravo.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok real quick, I want to state right now that there will never be a Clay and Emma romance in this story. They refer to each other as siblings, and Jason as Dad. No romance will be had in this story. Second, a reviewer amywegner16, had mentioned she liked the friction between Ray and Jason and that gave me an idea to play around with. This will be the last tour chapter, the next chapter there will be a time skip and the guys will be back home. Only because there is only so much I can write about Clay hanging around.

It had been two weeks since their tour started and Sonny had been trying to figure out how to talk to Clay about what had been happening between them. He wanted to talk with Clay and clear the air. He hated that their friendship had been strained within the past few months since Clay started to date Rebecca. Sonny couldn't let this go on any further. He had to talk it out with Clay and talk about his feelings, even if he didn't want to. That was the thing with Clay, he made Sonny want to be a better man. He made Sonny feel comfortable with talking about his feelings more instead of bottling them up or pushing them down with a bottle of whiskey. Clay was his kid brother, but also his best friend and he deserved more than this distance between them.

Sonny found Clay sitting outside at one of the tables with his laptop open. Sonny couldn't help but smile at knowing that Clay was writing a book. He had every intention of finding that first book when they got back and reading it. He wanted to know how Clay saw the world and he had a feeling that book was a window into Clay's mind. Sonny headed over with two water bottles and sat down across from Clay, placing the water down on the table next to the laptop. Clay looked up as he spoke.

"Thanks."

"You need to stay hydrated."

"Trent tell you that?" Clay asked, as he opened the water.

"He said, it was important to make sure you weren't getting dehydrated. How's the book coming?"

"Good. Anything happening with the team?"

The guys had gone out on two missions since their tour started and it was hard for Clay to watch them go knowing he wouldn't be there to watch their backs. He was stuck in HAVOC and had to be involved in any way he could from the sidelines. It was hard and he had no idea how he was going to be able to handle this for three months.

"Not right now. Though I think Trent is gonna come and find you soon to check out your wrist."

"Hopefully I can get this brace off."

"How have you been feeling?"

Sonny knew that Clay had been feeling very tired and nauseous from his medication for the TB. It was a side effect that couldn't be avoided because there were small traces of phosphate in the medication. That small amount was making Clay's allergy to it act up, but they didn't have a choice. The medication only came in that pill form. The result though was Caly sleeping a lot and not eating much. The guys could tell he had already begun to lose weight and he still had a few more months to go before he didn't have to take the medication.

"Same as always. The pain is a lot better though and Trent said my breathing was getting better. I'll be fine Son, you don't have to worry about me."

"I know you will be, because we're gonna make sure of it." Sonny promised. "Look um… I wanted to talk to you about the way I've been acting with you, ever since you started dating Rebecca."

"You mean you being an ass and trying to replace me with Vic?" Clay said lightly, but if he was honest with himself, it hurt knowing that Sonny felt like he could just replace him.

"Ya that. Look, I'm sorry. Brothers never act this way and I was in the wrong. You're my best friend Clay, you didn't deserve it."

"Why did you? I really don't understand why it was a problem." That was the thing Clay couldn't figure out. He knew there were moments here and there socially that he still didn't really get, but this was something he just couldn't figure out.

"It shouldn't have been. You know Stella, she just seemed to fit in so well with the life. She was smart enough to keep up with you, but she knew that this was your life. Stella was a great glass of whiskey. Rebecca, she was this top of the line fine wine. She was smart, but she lived in this fancy political world and you fit in it. You're so damn good at that world and I was afraid I was going to lose my best friend. That she was going to take you away from us. I know you have aspirations of being an Admiral one day and I had made peace with that. But then Rebecca came into your life and Lindell is using you for more political things, it seemed like that one day was coming quick and I did what I always do. I try and block out the feelings and move on, but that wasn't fair to you. And it was a shitty thing for a best friend and brother to do. I'm sorry Clay."

"You trying to replace me with Vic, it hurt Sonny. It hurt a lot. I didn't have many friends growing up and the ones that I did were killed. When you started to replace me with Vic, it felt like I wasn't good enough for you. Like all the time we spent together meant nothing to you, I was just some placeholder until someone better came around." Clay said honestly.

"No Clay, no. You are not a placeholder and you never will be. I screwed up. I didn't handle what happened well and I hurt you. I should never have done it and I'm sorry. But it had nothing to do with you or the fact that I didn't love you. I will always love you and I promise I will be more supportive from now on. Even if that means you want to make a career change."

"I appreciate it. And I'm not looking to make a career change. Lindell offered for me to apply for Stat Twenty-One to become an Admiral, but I turned him down. I want to get there through hard work and when it happens I'll know I'm ready for it and have the experience I need to make real changes."

"That's great Clay, but just so you know I would have been supportive if you did decide to take Lindell up on his offer." Sonny said honestly.

"Thanks brother." Clay said with a warm smile.

"How are you and Rebecca doing?"

"We broke up just over two months ago."

"Wait what? Why didn't you say anything?" Sonny asked, shocked. He thought that Clay would have told him something like that. It was just proof enough that his relationship with Clay had been damaged.

"Before the mission where I got hypothermia. An ex-boyfriend moved back to DC and he was the one that got away. We're still friends."

"Well, at least you lost to the one that got away. I'd imagine if Stella showed up on your doorstep you would have one hell of a decision on your hands. You know what this means?" Sonny said with a big smile.

"What?"

"We gotta go out drinking when we get home. Find you a nice rebound to cleanse the palette."

Clay gave a chuckle to that. "I'm not looking to be dating anyone right now. I'm sure you could take Vic."

"He is less prettier than you. Maybe I should be inviting Yoder out, once the ladies find out he's gay they'll be all over me." Sonny said with a deadly smile.

"Turnaround is fair play though, you'd have to go to gay bars with him." Clay warned.

"I got no problem with that. Though I might steal all of the attention." Sonny said with complete confidence.

Clay gave a chuckle, of course Sonny wouldn't have a problem with going into a gay bar. "Naw, you would attract a different type of man than Yoder does. Me and Yoder attract the same type so I've been banned from playing wingman for him."

"Oh there's got to be a story there."

"Back in California we would go out to the gay bars together, but the guys would be more interested in me. It didn't matter how many times we told them I was straight. Yoder even made a t-shirt for me that I had to wear that said I was straight and not the least bit bi-curious. It didn't matter, they all took it as a challenge. I would leave with fifty different numbers and he would get nothing. So he banned me from going with him." Clay chuckled at the memory.

Sonny gave a good laugh at that. He could picture a younger Clay standing around in a sea of men all trying to get into his pants. He would pay good money to see that.

"I really wanna see that." Sonny said.

"Maybe you can convince Yoder to let me tag along one night."

"Yoder seems like a good guy."

"He's a great guy. I wouldn't be where I am today if it hadn't been for him and Brian. It's good being back in the same town again."

"We'll have to grab a beer together when we get back. I'd like to get to know him better, especially if he's important to you."

"That'd be great." Clay said with a warm smile, one that Sonny easily returned.

Sonny felt better knowing that they had cleared the air. That they could finally get back onto the same page and back to where they were. Sonny was not going to let this happen again, he was going to make sure him and Clay were always good. Their friendship was too important to him to risk losing it.

"There you are."

Both Clay and Sonny looked over and saw Trent walking over to them.

"My wrist?" Clay asked.

"Ya, I need to check it out and make sure you can take that brace off." Trent said, as Clay moved over so Trent could sit down beside him.

Trent sat down, straddling the bench seat as Clay turned slightly so Trent would have proper access to his wrist. Trent removed the brace as he spoke.

"Any pain?"

"No."

Trent went through the process of feeling Clay's wrist, checking it for swelling and turning it in all directions. He was very pleased that there was no pain, no matter what direction Trent moved Clay's wrist. There was no swelling either and the bones felt good.

"It's good. I would say it's healed, but if you start to notice something off let me know right away."

"I will." Clay promised.

"How have you been feeling otherwise? Any headaches? Dizziness? Breathing tight?"

Trent was still very worried about Clay's health. After finding out he was not only sick with pneumonia and TB, but also his physical injuries he was a little paranoid about Clay's health. He was angry at himself for missing Clay's asthma and also the TB. He never even thought to have Clay checked for it and he should have. He dropped the ball and he wasn't going to be doing it again.

"Headaches still, but you and the Doc said that was normal. Everything else is fine. When my chest gets tight, I use my inhaler. I've only had to use it a couple times a day, but again everyone said that was normal until my lungs cleared up and the TB was gone."

Clay knew Trent blamed himself for not catching the asthma or the TB, but he shouldn't be blaming himself. There was no way any of them could have known something more was going on with him. It wasn't exactly like Clay had said his chest got tight when it happened. He had been so used to it he didn't think anything was wrong with it. So how was Trent supposed to know something was wrong if he never spoke up? Sometimes his brothers could be a little bit overprotective of him.

"They are normal and can be a side effect from the medication you are taking. And your lungs are healing so that is good that you haven't been having to use your inhaler too many times a day. If it gets worse let me know right away."

"I will. I promise."

"Alright, you are good. I'll go let the others know. Son, we might be getting spun up shortly. Davis is working on something."

"I'll go check in then. You alright Kid?" Sonny asked Clay.

"Guys I'm good. Don't worry about me." Clay said with a warm smile.

"Never gonna happen." Trent said, as he got up.

Clay watched as Trent and Sonny headed back towards the command center. Clay wished he was able to go with them, but this time around he was going to be benched. Clay let out a sigh and turned back to his laptop. He couldn't do anything about that right now, but he could keep working on this book and maybe get it written before the tour was up.

XXX

Jason made his way through the base a couple of days later. They had been busy on a mission trying to locate and bring in a runner for a terrorist cell for Mandy to interrogate. They were going to be trying to shut down the main terrorist cell that was making some noise this time around. It made for a long couple of days, but they were finally able to complete the mission and while they waited for more intel from Mandy they had some down time. After a quick check in with Davis on how Clay was while they were gone. He headed towards the mess hall to grab him and Clay some food, apparently Clay's meds were making him really nauseous these past couple of days. Something Trent had assured him was normal as he would have a build up of the meds in his system. Something that wouldn't be an issue normally, but with Clay's allergies it meant he had a bunch of phosphate in his system, making him sicker the longer he goes with taking the medication.

Jason grabbed their food and headed off to find Clay. He was able to find him in their lounge area laying down on the couch reading with Yoder hanging out watching some TV. That was also something that was different this time on tour. Yoder spent a lot more time with them than his own team. Yoder preferred to be around Clay, especially with him not feeling well. Plus his own team were still treating him badly for being gay. Something Jason had a feeling he might need to step in and handle. He didn't care that Yoder was gay, he didn't care about anyone's sexuality. That didn't change how well you could do this job. All that mattered was how well you could shoot and have your brother's back.

"Hey, you guys are back." Yoder said, as Jason walked in.

"Ya about an hour ago. Can I get some time with him?" Jason said with a nod to Clay, who was so lost in his book didn't even notice he was here.

"Ya for sure. He hasn't eaten since this morning." Yoder said, as he stood up.

"Got it covered." Jason said, as he held up the container in his left hand slightly.

Yoder gave Jason a warm smile and headed out. Jason placed the containers down on the coffee table and then went over and picked up the book from Clay's hands, snapping Clay out of his mind. Clay looked up with an annoyed face thinking it was Yoder, but it changed to a warm smile when he saw that it was Jason.

"Hey, you're back. How was it?"

"It was fine. We got our guy and Mandy has him now. Hopefully we'll have some new intel soon. You need to eat." Jason said, as he sat down.

Clay got up so he could eat and give Jason some space on the couch. Clay opened his container and saw that it was chicken fingers and fries. Jason put some extra salt packages down on the table and Clay looked over at him.

"Yoder?" Clay said knowingly. There was only one person alive that knew about this.

"The first day we were here we had a chat. You didn't think I would just let you sleep in the same room as him without questioning him did you?"

"Yes, but I should know better than that. And in your questioning, which I'm assuming went his way because I'm still sleeping in his room, you discovered my chicken finger secret?"

"Yes. He mentioned that chicken fingers and fries with extra salt tends to be the only thing you'll eat when you're not feeling too great. He also pointed out that you won't go out of your way for it either. And I know from Emma and Mickey growing up that the salt helps to settle your stomach and the fries and chicken fingers are bland enough to not upset your stomach more." Jason said, as he opened his container for his burger and fries.

"I thought I would feel better the longer I was on this medication. Turns out I was wrong." Clay said, as he added some salt to his food.

"You should check with Trent, maybe there is something he can give you for the nausea."

"There isn't, we already tried. Everything has phosphate in it, the downside of it being used for most pills. He was gonna look into herbs or teas that might help. Something natural that won't affect me. I may have made a joke about him finding someone that snuck some pot onto the base." Clay said with a small smirk.

Jason gave a chuckle to that. "You and Sonny. I doubt you'll find any though. Hopefully Trent can find something that will help until you can get off the medication. Until then rest is the best thing for you."

"I have been resting. It's just so weird being here and not out there. I'm in Havoc when I can be for you guys and for Yoder. But I can't be there. I can't see everything you do and feel the environment to know if something isn't right. I don't get how Blackburn does it. He used to be in the field and now he's stuck in an office unable to jump in if you need it. How do you do that?"

Clay honestly had no idea how he was ever going to get used to being in the background like this. He knew when he became an Admiral it would be different, he wouldn't be seeing it play out. He would be in an office or meetings to better the protocols and raising funds for what operators needed. He wouldn't be watching from the sidelines hoping that nothing terrible happened.

"It's not easy, it's hard. It's very hard when you first start doing it. I know Blackburn had to adapt to it when he first started. He used to be Alpha One and when he was promoted it took him out of the field. He wasn't sure at first, but he also knew he couldn't be in the field forever. He started to work as the Commander for Bravo and at first it was hard on him. I was in Bravo at the time working my way up to the top and I remember plenty of times when Blackburn would comment when he wasn't supposed to be. He was a back seat driver you could say for a little while. Eventually he learned how to trust us and in our skills. When you are in that position you have to trust in your team fully and in the plan. It's hard and Blackburn has seen teammates die on camera and that is something he has to deal with. But I think in that position you need to have trust and faith in your team. It's something I'll have to learn myself one day."

"That's what I'm worried about."

"Why would you worry about me?" Jason asked, with concern.

"You don't really have the personality to be standing off in the sidelines. You like being in the action and making sure everyone is ok. I know eventually you won't be able to be active anymore and I pray that you are still alive to reach that point. But at the same time I worry that you will drive yourself insane and sick if you are in a command position."

It was something that worried Clay quite often. He never wanted to bury Jason, but he did worry about what would come after Bravo for him. If he would be able to handle not being in the action and making the calls.

"First, you never have to worry about me. I will always be fine and figure things out. Am I ready to not be active, no, but that doesn't mean I would choose death over working in command. I know one day I'll have to make that move and I will make it and figure out how to handle the change. I'm not going to risk the team by staying in the field too long. And I am not going to risk missing out on grandchildren and seeing my kids get married because I was too stubborn to make a change."

"Good, that's good. And different to what you felt before. I know the thought of being in command made you all twitchy."

"It did, but with Alana no longer here I need to do what I can to make sure I'm there for the future. And speaking of the future we have to have a chat about it."

"About what?" Clay asked, with worry starting to settle in.

"The future of Bravo. I'm not going to be there one day and the B1 position needs to go to someone that the team will respect, listen to and is skilled enough to keep them alive and safe as best as possible. That person is going to be you."

"Ya after Ray." Clay said, not really sure why they were talking about this now. It wasn't like it was going to happen for the next ten years or more.

"Ray won't be able to be in the B1 position with him getting the Warrant Officer rank. When my time comes to step down or I'm taken out, the position becomes yours."

"But I don't have the ranking or the experience. There's other Tier One operators that would be up for the position before me." Clay was even more confused now.

"I spoke with Lindell before we left to see about how we get you into that position. He said there are always exceptions. You are up for the Bronze Star with Valour, you already know that. He confirmed that you would be getting it and with that new medal he would be able to promote you up to Petty Officer. With that new promotion all you would need to do is get your training done as a Green Team Instructor. That's it."

"Wait that's it? I'm only nine years on though, even if you make another five years, I don't have the experience that others would have."

"You wouldn't, but you didn't have the experience either when you were in a 2IC position in Team Three. You've shown how exceptional you are and people in the Upper Brass have been watching you. Once you get that promotion and your instructor hours in, then the spot is yours when it's time."

"Ok, so then I just need to figure out in the next few years when to get my instructor hours." Clay said, as he worked on processing this information.

"Not in the next few years no. When we get back you'll be starting with the new class in two months. We'll lose you for six months, but you'll be back with us in time for our next tour."

"You want me to start right away? Why?" Clay couldn't help but wonder if Jason was trying to set him aside because of everything that had happened to him.

"Because we don't know when something could happen to me. I plan on dying from old age, but the world might have a different plan for me. We just need you to get those hours to secure the future of Bravo and our family. I'm not trying to push you aside or put you in a bubble after what you've been through. I swear it Sunshine. This is all about keeping Bravo in the right hands."

The strength and sincerity in Jason's voice told Clay that it wasn't a lie. He wasn't trying to be overprotective of him or treat him with kid gloves. He wanted this for Bravo and for Clay. This was something he would need to do for his family and make sure Bravo would be secured.

"Ok, I'll do whatever I need to do. Are you sure the guys will be ok with it?"

"They already know and all of them are giving you their full support. And depending on the situation you might have Ray still as your number two before Vic can take over."

"Ya we're gonna need to talk about that one."

There was no way he was going to have Vic as his number two. He didn't even want him in Bravo and unless that changed Clay would be trying to get him transferred when he was in charge.

"You really don't like him." Jason stated, as he gave Clay his full attention instead of his food.

"I think Ray has good intentions and if he didn't vouch for me I probably wouldn't be here and I will always be grateful for that. But I think this time around he convinced you to let a fox into your henhouse." Clay answered honestly.

"Yoder had mentioned that he didn't like or trust Vic either. Said he was a snake in the grass, and two-faced in Green Team. He tell you about any of it?"

"Ya, that first day when we were talking about the social media page. I'm used to people not liking me, hell people on Team Three didn't like me either. But it seems like it's more than that with Vic."

"You don't trust him at all?"

Jason believed in listening to your instincts and living by them. They couldn't survive if they didn't. Clay had strong instincts, his gut was solid and often what saved all of their lives. If he doesn't trust Vic even a little after everything they had been through, that was an issue, a big issue that rested on Vic's shoulders.

"No, I don't. I know he's had our backs, and I know he got me out of that car in Yemen. But I doubt it was so I would be ok. I think he wants to make an impression. I think he wants everyone to look to him for that advice or game plan. And honestly, I wouldn't walk in front of him down a back alley alone. I think he will take out anyone that stood in his way, teammate or not."

Jason couldn't believe that Clay felt this way. This was serious. This wasn't a bad feeling about someone, this was a feeling that your own teammate would kill you if he could get away with it. This went to a whole new level.

"Why didn't you say something? I know you said he felt weird and that you didn't trust him, but you never said you couldn't trust him to watch your own back. As your father, as your team leader, that's something I need to know. What makes you feel that way?"

"The way I feel around him, like I'm working with the enemy. Sometimes I'll catch him looking at me and he doesn't see me looking at him out of the corner of my eye. He'll give me these looks when he thinks no one is watching that are dark, there's hatred in his eyes, but then it's gone the second anyone looks his way. Now all of a sudden since he's been on the team I'm having problems. This social media page shows up, the posts on there about things that only someone in our circle would know. The General all of a sudden changes his mind and I get attacked. Then what happened here on base and it was filmed and uploaded to that social media page. A page that was created and encrypted so heavily it is taking the Cyber Division a long time to remove it and backtrack it. All of this shit started when he came onto Bravo. And maybe I'm being paranoid and seeing things that aren't really there, but I can't ignore the timing of it all."

Jason could see where Clay was coming from. It was suspicious the timing of everything and it seemed to be getting worse. After his talk with Yoder and learning about what Vic had said about Clay in Green Team, it put Jason a bit on edge. The thing was though, he wasn't sure about Vic in the first place. His gut was telling him to go with Yoder, that Clay was right he would make a great teammate. It was Ray that had convinced him to go against his gut and follow Ray's. That Clay would need someone like Ray to keep him in check, that Vic would be perfect for it. But the more he thought about it the more he was questioning his decision. Clay wasn't his clone, he was a hell of a lot smarter than him. He didn't need someone like Ray to keep him in check. Yoder was right about that. Clay needed someone that could be whatever he needed at the time. He needed someone that knew when to push when not, when to be his backbone and when to be his sounding board. He doubted Vic could do that.

"The timing has crossed my mind. It makes me wonder if there was a new rookie that had a problem with you. Then what happened here on base, it's one hell of a coincidence to swallow. We're looking into who had access to the lights that were in the room. And I don't care how long it takes the Cyber Division, they will find who started that page and some of the posters. If you have no trust towards Vic then I'll keep you apart. I'm not going to put you in a position that you don't feel safe in because of a teammate. I'll be keeping a closer eye on him too and making sure he's not throwing you any dirty looks when he thinks no one is watching. As silly as it might sound, but how people act when they think no one is paying attention reveals who they truly are."

"Do you think I'm being paranoid? Honestly, am I seeing things that aren't really there?"

That was what bothered Clay about this the most. Because it seemed like everyone but him liked Vic. He didn't think it was because he took Yoder's place, or was the new guy, but maybe it was. Maybe subconsciously he didn't like Vic because he was the new rookie and not him or Yoder.

"I don't think you're paranoid or seeing something that isn't there. I think your gut is telling you something is wrong and I'm a firm believer in trusting your gut. Your mind works differently, and I don't mean that in a bad sense at all. You see the world differently than we do. You can break it down to the smallest detail, little things that most people don't even notice. If you are seeing something, then I believe you completely. Never doubt yourself Clay, never."

Jason was never going to let Clay ever doubt his mind. Clay was special, his mind was one of the things that made him special and Clay should never lose faith in it. Clay gave a nod and Jason could see the relief in his body. He had been carrying this around for a bit and it was just one more thing that had been weighing him down.

"When we get back and start going on missions I want to use you as my number two. I've already talked to the guys about it and they are good with it. Ray is going to work with Vic more closely to get him trained. I am going to be working very closely with you to get you ready to take over one day. There will also be missions where you will lead and I'll be your number two."

"Seriously?" Clay was shocked by that. He didn't think Jason would ever let him lead while he was still here. Jason didn't like giving up that control to anyone.

"Almost all new leaders have to figure it out for themselves and they go through a lot of hard times as they learn. I want to prevent you from some pain and tragedy. We're putting training wheels on you so you can learn in a safer environment while I am around to prevent anything tragic from happening. I will listen when you are leading, but I will speak up if something is off and we can talk it out and you can learn why or how it would be better to handle it. But you also have to listen to me when I question you and not take it personally. It's about learning."

"I won't take it personally and I will listen. I won't let you down." Clay promised.

"I know you won't, I'm not worried about that. Don't be afraid to make mistakes though, it's why I'm here. I'll catch you when you stumble." Jason said with a warm smile.

Clay smiled back and the atmosphere in the room was light again. Jason started to eat as Clay spoke.

"So how do you teach Green Team?"

"Can't tell you that. That's something you will have to figure out. Some instructors, as you know, are harder while others take a gentler approach. It's up to you on what type of teacher you'll be."

"I bet you were a hard ass. Couldn't be pleased." Clay teased.

"I may have never been asked to teach again." Jason said with a smirk.

Clay gave a laugh to that. He couldn't even imagine what it would have been like to be trained by Jason.

"Did you train anyone I would know?"

"Ya Derek was in my class. He impressed me. I would have recommended him for Bravo, but we didn't get first pick. No one else really stood out."

"Do you ever regret picking me?"

Clay knew their relationship made things a little bit complicated for Jason. Clay could understand if Jason had wished he hadn't picked him. It would have made things easier on him.

"That's not that simple to answer. I'll let you in on a secret, I regret everyone that I pick for this team."

"Why?" Clay wasn't expecting that answer.

"Because they become my family and I love them, but then I have to turn around and put them in danger every time we get spun up. I risk losing them and having to bury someone I love. At the same time though, I don't regret it because if they weren't with me, they might not still be here. I could have lost them and I wouldn't have them in my life. So I regret it and I don't at the same time. For you, as a team leader, no I don't regret picking you. You have a lot of great skills that we needed. As a father though, I regret you being put into danger, but if I hadn't picked you my family wouldn't be complete. I wouldn't have gotten the chance to know you and that is something I could never regret." Jason said warmly.

"I don't regret it for a second either." Clay agreed.

Jason gave him a wink and Clay knew that no matter what happened in the future he would be ok. He had his family and it included some very overprotective brothers, but also one hell of a father.

XXX

Ray found Vic by himself at the makeshift shooting range that they had on base. He had noticed some tension in Vic during the past couple of weeks they had been on tour and he wanted to find out what was going on with him. Ray waited until Vic was finished with his clip before he went over and tapped him on the shoulder. Vic turned around and pulled off his headphones so he could hear.

"Hey, we got something?" Vic asked.

"Not yet. I just wanted to check in with you. You've been a little tense these past couple of weeks. What's going on? You nervous with this being your first tour with us?" Ray asked, as he leaned back against one of the stakes of crates.

Vic spoke as he reloaded his gun and put it away. "No, I've been looking forward to being on tour with Bravo. It's just not what I had been expecting."

"What were you expecting?"

Vic gave a shrug. "In Green Team all you heard was about how the teams are family. That you're brothers and nothing will ever break that bond. After so long of not having a family it sounded amazing, perfect. I thought tour would be about us going on ops but getting to know each other better and hanging out, having some fun."

"That's what it is brother." Ray agreed.

"But it hasn't felt that way. Everyone is worried about Spenser, constantly checking in on him or talking about him. Honestly, I have no idea how he hasn't gone insane with the amount of times someone has been bugging him about how he was feeling. Then there's Yoder, he doesn't like me at all and everytime I try to be around the guys it seems like he is there. He's always there around Spenser, so I can't even try and get to know Spenser. It seems like everyone is doing their own thing."

"This time around is a little bit different with the kid being hurt and sick. We can be overprotective of him, but keep in mind that's our kid brother and the future leader of this team. He's used to us being overprotective of him, but it can be a lot for people who are not used to it. As for Yoder, he's a long-time friend and brother of Spenser's so he's been around the kid a lot and around the guys. But there have been plenty of times when Spenser is alone where you could go over and talk with him."

"And say what? He says maybe five words to me. I don't get why he doesn't like me. I mean I thought we were getting somewhere."

"Spenser's not easy to get to know. He's got a lot of walls up around him and it takes a bit to get him to trust you enough to let you take a peek behind them. It took us a long time too. You just gotta chip away at it."

"Is this how it normally is? Is it normal to have the team leader treating one of the other members with special treatment? I don't even understand why Spenser is here right now if he's not cleared to be in the field. Since when does the Navy have a Tier One operator on tour that can't even leave?"

"It's not normal, no, but Jason isn't a traditional leader. If it had been anyone else, yes they would have stayed behind, but Clay is special to Jason as you know. That makes things a little bit complicated at times. It's about to get more complicated and I'll have to talk with him about it."

That was something that Ray and Jason really needed to chat about. He didn't mind Clay being number two when they got back and learning how to lead them. At the same time though, he didn't want Jason letting Clay lead more and do more because he felt like he could. He didn't want Jason's actions to make Clay cocky and feel entitled.

"It just feels like everyone is going off of what Spenser is feeling. I can't get close to anyone because they are waiting for Spenser to warm up to me. Like I have to get his approval before everyone accepts me. Even Brock doesn't want to chat with me."

"Brock doesn't have much to say to begin with, unless it's with Trent or the kid. And the guys are a little unsure about you right now. Yoder had mentioned that you were talking trash about Spenser to some of the Green Team Cadets."

"What? Seriously? So what Yoder says must be true? Other cadets used to talk trash about Spenser and I would defend him. I didn't have to know him to know that he didn't deserve that. I have never said anything bad about him. And if Yoder is saying that I did, then he's lying with his own agenda." Vic said with an edge in his voice that had Ray believing him.

"Ok, I believe you. Look, this whole situation is a mess right now. I'll talk with Jason about it and get it sorted. You shouldn't feel like you can't be around your own team because of someone in or out of it. We'll get it sorted and fix it."

This was what Ray had been worried about. He liked Clay, he did, but the strong connection he had with Jason made things complicated. Vic was their brother now, he was Bravo and that meant that everyone in Bravo was supposed to put an effort into getting to know him. Clay wasn't trying to get to know Vic at all, he seemed to be going out of his way to make Vic not feel welcomed.

"I don't want to cause any problems." Vic said.

He would love to get Clay in trouble and cause some friction, but he didn't want to be the one pushed out if people thought he was the problem. He wanted Clay gone.

"You aren't. Spenser is. We'll get it worked out. And don't ever feel like you can't be around us regardless of who is there. You're not going anywhere and Spenser will just have to get over it and accept it."

Vic gave a slightly unsure nod, but on the inside he was jumping up and down. Things were starting to look up for Vic. The social media page was blowing up, that video of Clay was just what he needed to push it to the next level. According to some of the posts some Upper Brass officials were not happy with Clay's reaction. It was getting easier and easier to get Clay off of Bravo, even if it was for the next two months when they returned from tour before he went into teaching Green Team. That was something else Vic was hoping he could put a stop to. Clay couldn't take over if he didn't have his instructor hours. So if he could find a way to delay that, it might be the time he needed to get Clay off of Bravo for good.

Ray headed off to find Jason, something needed to be done about the relationship between Clay and Vic. It had gone on long enough and it was time to get this situation sorted and buried. Ray found Jason in his tomato garden and headed over to him.

"Hey Jace, we gotta talk."

"Ya, about what?" Jason said, as he continued to water the plants.

"About what's going on between Vic and Spenser. It's starting to trickle down to the other guys and that's not right nor fair."

Jason looked up and gave Ray his full attention now. "What's trickling down?"

"The guys are picking up on Spenser's attitude towards Vic. They are starting to distance themselves from him and that's not right. He's on Bravo, he's our brother now and he doesn't deserve to be treated like the black sheep in the family."

"Why are you assuming that's on the kid? They might have their own issues with Vic after what Yoder had to say about him."

"Something that we don't even know if it's true. I asked Vic about it, he said he never talked shit towards Clay. Said he would defend him. He thinks Yoder is lying because he doesn't like him, probably because he got picked over him. And honestly Jace, I'm kinda agreeing with him. Vic hasn't shown us anything that would lead us to believe he has a problem with Clay. He risked his life to save him back in Yemen when he was stuck in the car."

"Clay has noticed dirty looks that Vic sends his way when he thinks no one is looking. He didn't trust Vic before he got here and talked with Yoder. And Yoder, I believe him. He was sincere and you can't fake that level of honesty and love he has for Clay. He wouldn't be lying to Clay about anything, especially a teammate. And he didn't seem bitter to me at all. He's pretty damn confident that one day he'll be on the same team as Clay and he seems pretty happy to wait for that chance."

"So you want to believe someone that isn't even our brother?" Ray challenged.

"You want to believe someone that has been on this team for a couple of months? Why are you so sure Vic isn't lying? We barely know him. And I'll believe Yoder, because Clay has known him since he was nineteen years old and not once has there been an issue. Not once has that trust been broken, when there were plenty of opportunities for it to be. And above all, I will trust Clay's gut when he tells me that he can't trust Vic not to shoot him in the back." Jason said with an edge to his voice as he placed his hands on his hips. He was ready to do battle if he had to.

"Shoot him in the back? Come on Jace, even you have to admit how insane that is. Vic has a great record, an impressive one. I think this is about Spenser not feeling special anymore. This new guy shows up, becomes close with Sonny, close with me, has a lot to offer and could surpass Spenser and he can't deal with it." Ray challenged.

"Surpass Clay? In what? Vic would have to learn ten languages and be able to hit a target four thousand yards away in a thunderstorm to surpass Clay's skills. Vic is a middle of the road guy. The only reason he was picked is because you were convinced he would make a perfect number two to Clay. I went along with it, because I trust your gut, but it wasn't my gut's choice. I would have gone with Yoder and seeing how Clay and the guys interact with him, he would have been the better choice."

"So what you want to get rid of Vic and pick up Yoder now?" Ray asked, pissed.

"I didn't say that. But you don't get to make assumptions about why Clay doesn't trust him. And you damn well know that Vic will never be even close to Clay in skills. He doesn't trust him based on what he has seen. It has nothing to do with him being the new guy or him feeling threatened that his position will be taken away. You know that."

"I know he's still cocky. I know he gets away with things that would never have been allowed before." Ray challenged.

"We're all cocky in our skills. You don't get to hold that against him. And you know his cockiness in the beginning was his shield. And gets away with what Ray?" Jason challenged.

This was not what he wanted to be doing right now. He had enough going on in his head, he didn't need problems with Ray to go with it. It was bad enough he couldn't trust Vic to be alone with Clay, now he had this to go with it. It seemed like Ray was more interested in taking Vic's side over Clay's, when it should have been the other way around. Vic was the new guy, yes he was a brother, but he hadn't earned that spot in their lives or hearts yet.

"Oh come on Jace, you let him get away with everything. All the times he's questioned orders. All the times he's speaking up when he shouldn't be. The stunts he pulls. Even him not sleeping in our quarters. You would never allow anyone else to do it, but you do him. Now you want to train him? How the hell can we be sure you won't let him do whatever he wants just because he's your kid?"

"Are you questioning my loyalty to this family Ray?" Jason said, pissed as he moved closer.

"I'm questioning if you should be the one teaching Clay. Maybe it would be better for him and the team for him to go onto another team to learn from them. Then he can come back and lead when it's time. At least then he would have started to earn it."

"Earn it? You think he hasn't earned it?" This was only pissing Jason off more.

"You know he hasn't. Come on Jace, he's barely nine years on the job. Of course he hasn't earned it. He's only been a Tier One operator for three freaking years. There's easily ten guys that have earned it more than him. Guys with the experience, the training, and skills to lead a team. Clay is being handed it to him without any of the real work. Shit, he doesn't even have to have all of the requirements. The only reason he is even being considered is because you went in and asked and Lindell wants to reshape the way politicians view the Navy. How long do you think it will be before one of those politicians comes knocking at our door looking for a favor because they helped Clay get into the B1 position? He's too young, too inexperienced and too entitled. And you're letting it happen. You're encouraging it despite what should be happening with him. He shouldn't even be here now Jace. He's getting paid to sit around base all day when he should be on medical leave at home."

"He's here because I want him here. Because he can help in HAVOC and learn more about strategy and how operations can be while he is still healing. And I don't care about who might have more experience then him. Clay's earned it from everything he has accomplished in those nine years he's been in the Navy. He's earned it over the others because he is Bravo, he's skilled, and a genius. You know what I think? I think it's you that has the problem."

"With what?" Ray asked, outraged that Jason would even say that to him.

"I think you are the one feeling less special. Ya, I think you have a problem with me using the kid as a number two and not you. That it'll be him taking over and not you, but you don't get to put that on him. You decided to go the Warrant Officer route, if you are having regrets about it now then get it sorted. You don't get to take your shit out on him."

"I don't have regrets. I made the decision to be a Warrant Officer because it is what was best for my family. That doesn't change that your judgment with him has been compromised, it was a long time ago. You know the second he became a son to you that you should have transferred him to another team. It would have been what was best for him and for the team. Now you want to leave the team in the hands of someone who won't be ready. Even if it's a decade from now."

"You got a problem with how I run my team then you are welcome to transfer out. I am getting the team ready for the future and that future is being led by Clay. If you can't handle that then I am sure there are plenty of other teams that would be happy to have you. End of discussion." Jason snapped.

He was done. He shouldn't have to justify his decisions to anyone, least of all Ray. He knew that Clay was going to be taking over Bravo when his time came. This wasn't something that was a surprise to him. Yet he had a problem with it now all of a sudden. Jason was not going to put up with it. He never wanted to have to decide between Clay and Ray. He never wanted to have to make that decision, but he would if he had to and it would not end well for Ray.

"You're compromised Jace and one of our brothers will end up paying the price for it." Was all Ray said before he headed off.

Ray couldn't believe how this conversation went. He knew it wasn't going to be all warm and fuzzy, but he didn't expect Jason to get that defensive over the situation. Ray stood by what he said, Clay wasn't ready and he shouldn't even be entertaining the idea of it. Clay had a lot more to learn, he had a lot more humility he needed to learn before he would become a good leader. Ray had no idea what was going to happen with Bravo now as tensions were certainly going to be rising. Something that could ultimately end up deadly for one of them.

XXX

It was a month into their tour and the tension hadn't gotten any better within the team. Ray and Jason were at odds outside of the field, and in the field Ray did as he was told, but they kept the talking down to the bare minimum. The guys had all picked up on it, but neither wanted to discuss it. Things between Vic and the guys had slowly been improving, but he still wasn't able to get any time with Clay, not that Vic wanted it. Still, he needed to find a way to get to Clay so he would have more access to him for whatever might come up in the future. The social media page was still going strong. Vic knew that the program would constantly change the location of the page in terms of the backside of things so it would be impossible to trace back to its origins. Vic had paid good money for it, but it was a small price to pay to ensure he would never be discovered. Vic had also been communicating with Ash and General White on his burner phone to get Clay removed from Bravo by the time they went back on operations after tour.

Clay was exhausted and was one huge stress ball at this point. He had been watching Team Seven and Bravo going out on operations for the past three weeks now. He wanted to make sure they were ok, that all of his brothers were ok. The result was though that he was sleeping odd hours and not enough of them. He had been up for the past forty-eight hours as Team Seven and Bravo had both been sent out on an operation at the same time. Two different things, but Clay had spent his time going back and forth between the two command centers. Everything had been going fine on both teams' end, but that all went up in smoke around twenty-four hours ago when the compound that Team Seven was invading started to explode. They had lost contact with everyone in Team Seven and so far their Commander was not looking to send in reinforcements. Apparently after twenty-four hours of no contact that wasn't good enough to send anyone in. They needed proof of life before risking more lives. He was just accepting that everyone was dead, but there were parts of the compound that weren't on fire or hit in the explosions. Not to mention those compounds often had an underground system. They all could be trapped down there without radio contact or a way out.

"Sir please you need to send someone in. We don't know they are dead." Clay tried again.

"We have no proof of life. It's been twenty-four hours, I'm sorry but without hearing from them after this long, they're gone." Commander Halls said.

The radio started to come to life, but there was nothing but static coming back over it. It sounded like nothing, but Clay instantly recognized the pattern.

"That's Yoder." Clay said, and he couldn't help the joy that flooded through him.

"It's just static." Commander Hall said, not impressed at all.

"It's our signal. Three clicks, pause then three more. We created it when we were in Team Three together if one of us were ever in trouble and couldn't talk. His radio might not be able to transmit strongly enough to get words to come through but the clicking would." Clay explained.

The radio stopped, but then a moment later it picked back up and continued the pattern of clicks and pauses.

"You got anything?" Commander Hall asked one of their techs.

"No Sir. It's just static, most likely from the radio dying." The tech answered.

"It's not. You need to listen to me. At least one of them is alive. They could be trapped underground in the tunnels." Clay said again.

Clay could not believe this. They finally had proof that someone was alive on that compound and now no one was going to do anything about it. He couldn't leave Yoder trapped there all alone.

"My order is final. I am not sending any men in there to get killed on a pointless mission." Commander Hall said.

Clay didn't even bother with trying to point out that even if it was a recovery mission, that still meant the world to families. Clay wasn't going to be doing this. He wasn't going to be standing around waiting for someone to do something. Clay left the room and headed towards where Bravo's Commander Center was. If Commander Hall wasn't going to send someone in, he knew Blackburn would. Clay made his way through the base at a run. He didn't care that his lungs wouldn't be able to handle it, he just had to get there and hope that either Bravo was back or they were finished their operation and could head over to where Team Seven was. Clay was running down the halls when he ran into Bravo. Literally, as he turned the corner he slammed right into Jason's chest. Jason was quick to grab Clay to keep him upright.

"Where's the fire kid?" Full Metal said, jokingly.

"You're not supposed to be running." Trent immediately said, as they could all hear the slight wheeze to Clay's breathing still.

Jason moved Clay back a bit as Trent went over to start looking him over, but Clay shook him off.

"It's Team Seven. They were raiding a compound and the majority of it exploded and the whole team went dark. That was twenty-four hours ago, no contact. But there's a signal that Yoder and I have and he's doing the radio signal but Commander Hall still won't send anyone in. He's not listening to me." Clay said in a hurry.

"Ok, slow down and take a breath first. Then explain." Jason said calmly.

Clay took in as deep of a breath as he could before he spoke again. "Twenty-four hours ago the compound that Team Seven went in to raid started to explode. Roughly twenty-five percent of it is intact. There's been no communication or radio contact within the past twenty-four hours. However, a few moments ago a radio signal came through. It was a series of clicks, three then pause then three more. It was a signal that myself, Yoder and Brian invented so that we would have a way of contacting each other should we be unable to speak and be in trouble. I informed Commander Hall of this, but he is refusing to send a team in. Even for a recovery mission, said it wasn't worth it."

"There's probably other factors that he has to take into account to not send anyone in." Vic said.

"To not go in and retrieve their bodies at the very least? There's no excuse not to send someone in." Full Metal instantly said.

"Clay, I know Yoder is your friend, but that doesn't mean the radio sounds are anything special. Radios have static all the time, even after they have been damaged." Ray said, not really seeing how Clay could be making that jump.

"I know the code. It's Yoder, he's reaching out." Clay said with complete confidence.

"Alright." Jason said, as he started to head off.

The guys all followed behind him, Ray speaking as they walked.

"Jace, we need more than some radio sounds, you know that."

"What I know is that it's been twenty-four hours since anyone has heard from a Seal Team. Whether they are alive or not they deserve for someone to bring them home to their family."

"No man left behind." Sonny agreed.

"We also have to think about this team right here. We're exhausted, starving and dehydrated. We've been going for forty-eight hours almost." Ray pointed out.

"So you're saying we should leave them behind?" Sonny asked, pissed off that Ray would ever suggest that.

"I didn't say that." Ray snapped back.

"Then what are you saying?" Sonny challenged.

"Alright enough!" Jason snapped.

He understood they were all exhausted and hungry, but this was the lives of six Seals on the line. They could be dead, but they could also be alive. They owed it to them to find out. They owed it to Clay to see if his brother was alive. They walked into their Command Center to see that everyone was still there.

"Nice work everyone." Blackburn said as they walked in.

"We got a problem. Team Seven went dark twenty-four hours ago after an explosion on the compound they were raiding. Commander Hall is refusing to send anyone in after them, even though Clay just heard Yoder's signal over the radio via clicks." Jason explained.

"Everyone with me." Blackburn said, as he headed for the door.

Everyone followed behind him as they headed into Team Seven's commander center. You could tell that Commander Hall was not impressed by the invasion of Bravo, but they didn't care. Not when there were American Seals' lives on the line.

"What is the meaning of this Blackburn?" Commander Hall demanded.

"It's been brought to my attention that your team has been out of contact for twenty-four hours now. Bravo is willing to go in and bring them home."

Blackburn knew that this was going to take a bit of finesse. Commander Hall didn't like being told what to do or for someone to step on his toes. If he didn't want to send someone in it was going to take a bit to convenience him.

"Oh really? Did Lindell's little puppet come and tell you about my operation?" Commander Hall said, as he crossed his arms.

The radio continued with the clicking sound again and once it stopped Davis spoke.

"That's not normal for radio static."

"It's Yoder's signal." Clay said, happy that someone else was finally hearing it.

"Radios have static all the time." Team Seven's tech guy said.

"Yes, but they don't have a pattern to them. Someone is keying the radio to make the clicking sound." Davis argued.

"Look, we don't mind going in." Jason said.

"After twenty-four hours and no one has seen or heard from them. It is most likely that they are dead. Sending anyone else in could only result in more casualties on our end." Commander Hall said, not budging.

"Even if they are, they still deserve a proper burial. My guys will take the risk." Blackburn said.

"And this is my operation. It has been closed." Commander Hall stubbornly said.

"Ok ya, screw this." Clay said, as he pulled out his phone.

"And who are you going to call? Your Captain? I can call mine and he will only back up my decision. But if you feel the need to go running to your Captain be my guest. I'm sure he'll give you a nice treat later." Commander Hall said condescendingly.

"Commander Hall, you better not be implying what it sounds like. I would hate to have to disclose your assumption in my report." Blackburn said.

"And I'm not calling Captain Lindell. I know Captain Samson would just call him and try to stall the green light." Clay said, as his phone rang. When someone picked up he spoke. "Good evening Admiral Anderson, I'm sorry to be calling you so late."

Some of the guys couldn't help but smile at knowing who Clay had called. It also didn't go unnoticed by Commander Hall that Clay had his number in his phone.

"Yes Sir a situation has come up. Seal Team Seven has been out of contact for twenty-four hours after an explosion went off at a compound they were raiding. We just received a signal through radio clicks that Yoder and I used back in Team Three. Commander Hall is not allowing anyone to go and provide aid. Commander Blackburn and Bravo have agreed to go in; we just need the green light to do so." Clay was quiet for a moment before he spoke again. "Yes Sir. I appreciate it. I would be happy to come by for dinner when I get back, it's been a while since I've seen the grandchildren. I will. Thank-you Sir." Clay finished before he handed the phone over to Blackburn.

"Admiral Anderson." Blackburn said, as he started to listen.

"We're green lit." Clay said to the others.

"You just made an enemy little boy." Commander Hall said in a deadly tone.

"I have a lot of them. But I also have Admirals, Generals, Sedators, Congressmen, the Secretary of State and more in my back pocket to watch my ass. And they all know that I don't call in favors unless it's of dire circumstances. I expect when you get back that you'll be having a lengthy discussion about unbecoming behavior. I would be careful though the Admiral is already hot after the conversation we had about how you are allowing your team to treat Yoder because he's gay. He found it very dishonourable and offensive, especially because his happily marriage gay son was on the video call for it." Clay said with complete confidence and a smirk.

"I could have you court martialed for insubordination." Commander Hall threatened.

"Good luck with that." Clay said with a slight chuckle.

"You think you're invincible because you play politics?" Commander Hall said with disgust.

"Not at all. You could have me court martialed, but it'll never make it to trial. It might take me a couple of days, but it'll disappear. I can do anything I set my mind to and I have enough connections to get me through to the end. You might win for a couple of days, but in the end I'll be the one coming out on top." Clay simply said.

Clay knew he wasn't invincible. He knew he could be hurt or any number of things. But he also knew that he had enough connections to help get him out of it. It might take an hour or it might take months, either way he'll get there. Blackburn ended the call and turned his attention to his team. He knew Commander Hall was not happy, but he didn't have time for damage control right now. They were twenty-four hours behind the explosion. If anyone had been injured in the explosion, they could have easily bled out by now. They were on the clock and they were never going to catch up. All they could do was get out there and hope they could save some of them.

"We're clear. Grab what you might need and head out to the compound site. We'll get you what you need for when you get there." Blackburn said.

"I'll need everything you have on the compound and the operation." Mandy said, as the others started to head out and grab what they would need for this new operation. They would need to restock their ammo and medical supplies as they had no idea what they were going to find.

Jason was over where his gear was to grab some extra things when Clay went over to him and spoke softly.

"You won't let go will you?"

Clay knew he was still on medical and his lungs weren't that great, but he could fight through it. He could push through the tightness, headache and exhaustion if it meant he could help get Yoder.

Jason turned to give Clay his full attention. "You know I can't let you. It's not even about you being on medical leave still, I can see you don't feel well. You've barely been sleeping, your squinting which means you have another headache and you have barely been eating anything because of the medication. I know he's your brother and I promise you we will bring him home. The best thing you can do to help is stay in HAVOC and do whatever they need you to do. Something went wrong on this op, help them figure out what that is."

Clay gave a nod and Jason knew he was not happy about being stuck here. Jason understood fully though, if he was in Clay's position he would want to be going out there too. If Clay had been a little bit healthier than Jason might have entertained the idea, but the bottom line was, Clay's body wasn't there yet. Jason placed his hand on the side of Clay's face as he spoke. "I promise, we'll bring him home son."

"I know, it just really sucks."

Jason pulled Clay in for a hug, one he easily returned and after a moment they pulled apart. They had Seals to go and rescue. With everyone all set they made their way into HAVOC to see what the plan was.

"Alright, Team Seven were going after a subgroup of the same terrorist cell we have been chasing. This subgroup is supposedly being used to house and transport weapons and explosives. Intel had it that there were only two dozen hostiles within the compound, that is still unknown if it was correct." Blackburn started.

"Best we can figure, when Team Seven entered the compound they hit something that caused the large explosion. Most likely they hit a failsafe that they weren't aware of and it triggered the set of explosions to eliminate any connection to our terrorist cell. Now, based on satellite images and the blueprints to the compound, it was built over underground tunnels that were used as an escape route but also to snuggle the guns and explosives in unnoticed. It's possible when the explosions happened that the ground opened up and they fell into the tunnels." Davis continued.

"So they could be trapped underground with no way of getting a radio signal out." Sonny commented.

"It's possible, and based on the radio signal we do know, at least Yoder is trapped without a signa strong enough to talk onl. We have no way of knowing if everyone is there, who is injured or alive." Mandy said.

"How did we not know about them?" Ray asked.

"We've been chasing down this terrorist cell, not anyone that could be connected to them. We've been going after the head of the snake. Team Seven has been focusing on small groups that could be supplying or working for any number of terrorist cells within the area. We had no idea they were even connected." Mandy explained.

"We do now though and we will be working on ensuring their organization is shut down. We can't have a group supplying weapons and explosives to any terrorist cell. You will make your way to Team Seven, bring infrared just in case. We'll keep working from here to see if we can give you a starting point for the search." Blackburn said.

"Let's go." Jason said.

They all started to head out and Trent went over to Clay and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine. You focus on them." Clay didn't want Trent to worry about him. He could also rest when they got back and he knew that Yoder would be ok.

"I got him, I promise."

"I know. I don't know if this matters, but he had a really bad skull fracture five years ago to the back of his head."

"That helps, I'll make sure he's ok. Is there anything else?" A past skull fracture meant that the area could be weaker from having to heal.

"He's got hepatitis B. He's on the treatment for it still, he's had it for about eighteen months. I don't know if that makes him contagious or not."

"How did he get it?"

It wouldn't normally matter, but in this case he had to make sure it wasn't from drug use or something else that could be an underlying condition.

"About a year and a half ago he found out his fiance cheated on him. They had been together for five years and stopped wearing protection. His fiance cheated with some guy he picked up in a bar and contracted it." Clay was still pissed about it and if he ever saw the guy again he would be knocking his ass out.

Trent gave a nod. It wasn't ideal, but it was curable after the treatment, though treatment could take years depending on the strain. "I'll be careful. Thank-you."

Clay gave a nod and Trent squeezed his shoulder gently before heading out, leaving Clay with Davis, Blackburn, Mandy and support.

"It'll be alright, they'll get them." Blackburn said, trying to offer some comfort.

"I know they will. I just wish I knew what their condition will be when they do."

"Try and stay positive." Blackburn said with a supportive hand on his shoulder.

Clay gave a nod and went over to see what he could do to help. He couldn't be there in the field, but he could help them here and Clay wasn't going to go and rest until everyone came back.

The guys were on the chopper and Jason could pick up the tension within it. It had been a tense few weeks, ever since him and Ray had that argument. The guys didn't know what they had fought about, but they knew they weren't vibing together right now. That tension was starting to trickle down as Vic and Ray spent more time together. The guys noticed that Clay was still avoiding Vic and spending more time with Sonny and Yoder. The three of them spent a lot of time together and Jason could tell that Sonny was trying to repair his relationship with Clay after the past few months. Sonny was also putting in the effort to get to know Yoder and Jason was proud of him for that. It showed that Sonny had changed over the past five years and was opening himself up more. Clay was an amazing influence on him.

Now they were going right back out after a long and hard mission to rescue Yoder and Team Seven. Jason was really hoping he was not about to bring his son's brother back dead. He really hoped that Yoder had held on and would be ok.

"Look, I know we are all tired and starving. I know things have been tense recently, but this mission isn't just another mission. We are going after six Seals that could be dead or dying. We're going to bring six brothers home. One of which we've all gotten to know. Yoder means a lot to Clay, so I am asking all of us to put whatever difference or problems we are having aside and do this for them, do this for Clay." Jason said, as he looked at each of his men.

"Despite whatever is going on between any of us Jace, Clay is our kid brother and none of us want to see that pain in his eyes. We'll bring them home." Ray said with a strength to his voice.

"And make these sons of bitches pay." Sonny added.

Sonny had noticed some tension within the group these past few weeks. He knew when Jason and Ray were on the outs and he had a feeling it had to do with the tension between Clay and Vic. Sonny knew that something needed to be done about the distance between Clay and Vic, but he had no idea what that was. Clay didn't trust Vic and that mistrust was starting to trickle down. It didn't help that Jason seemed to be not trusting him either. The whole situation was a mess and Sonny had no idea what any of this meant. What he did know was that Clay loved Yoder, that was his brother, one of his first brothers, Sonny didn't want to put that level of pain in Clay's eyes.

The second the chopper landed the guys were out and making their way through the compound. The place was smoking, but the fire seemed to have simmered down at least. They worked clearing the buildings, going one at a time scanning them with the infrared and having Cerberus sniff around for anyone. They had come across a few bodies that were hostiles. It seemed like the compound blew up without the hostiles knowing it would. It was looking more and more likely that Team Seven had tripped one of the wires. They reached the eighth building when Cerberus finally stopped and whined at a pile of rubble.

"Got something." Brock said.

The guys came over to him and Trent used the infrared to see if they could see anything through the rubble.

"Nothing is coming up, but it might be too thick."

"He's indicating someone is down there." Brock said.

"Could be a combatant." Vic commented.

"No he would only indicate if it was someone he knew. There's a good chance he picked up Yoder's scent. Cerb's been around Yoder with him being around Clay." Brock said.

There had been plenty of times in the past month where Brock had to leave Cerb behind while on a mission. He would come back to see Clay and Yoder playing with Cerb. It was one of the reasons why Brock liked Yoder and knew he was a good man. Cerb never played with someone that didn't smell right or he didn't trust. Brock trusted Cerb's instincts and he never let him down. It's how he knew Clay was a good man. Cerb all but ran over to him on the plane that first time and now Cerb spent just as much time with Clay out on tour as he did with Brock. When Clay was sick or injured, Cerb was right there beside him, sleeping in the bed with him. Brock was good about it. Cerb had been his third k9 partner, his other two dying on the job. Brock knew there would come a day where Cerb was too old for this life or had been through too much for it. Eventually Brock would have to retire Cerb and let him have a normal dog life, Brock was good with that. But, if Brock were to die in the field he could do so knowing that Cerb would be happy with Clay. Brock had changed his will to include Clay getting Cerb should something happen to him. Clay would be able to keep up with his training or he would make sure Cerb got to have a great life during retirement.

"Let's get this rubble removed. We could have guys down there." Jason said.

He trusted Cerb and if he was indicating that someone was down there, then someone was down there. They guys went through the painstaking task of removing large rubble, after large rubble. It seemed like everytime they removed a piece of rubble three more would take its place.

"It must have collapsed down into the tunnel." Ray said.

They continued to remove the rubble until they were finally able to see down into the tunnel. The problem was, it was pitch black, they couldn't see anything. They all pulled out their lights and pulled their guns. Brock went down first with Cerberus leading the way. Cerberus pulled Brock down the tunnel a few feet before their lights were able to pick up a body. There sitting up against the wall, unconscious was Yoder. He was covered in dirt from the explosion and being in the tunnel. It was hard to tell if he was banged up or not because of the dirt. They could see blood on his face though and his radio in his limp hand. Cerberus started to nudge at Yoder's face with his nose and barked to try and wake up Yoder. Yoder let out a groan as he opened his eyes and got a face full of Cerberus.

"Hey boy." Yoder said with a rough voice.

Trent and Jason both bent down as Brock pulled Cerberus back.

"You alright brother?" Jason said, as he tried to get a better look at Yoder with what little light they had.

"Took you long enough." Yoder said with a small smirk.

"What hurts?" Trent asked.

"Head and ribs." Yoder answered as Trent got his gloves on.

"Do you know where the others are?" Jason asked.

"They were ahead of me. They went down first, I tried to find em, but there's rubble blocking the path up there."

"Everyone move forward, try and find where the others are. I'll be right there." Jason ordered.

The guys headed off to try and locate the other members of Team Seven. They were relieved that Yoder seemed to be in decent shape, exhausted and banged up but nothing was bleeding or crushed.

"Clay?" Yoder asked.

"He's alright, back in HAVOC. Your radio signal finally got through. You need to focus on yourself right now. Do you know what happened?" Jason asked, as Trent checked Yoder over.

"No. One minute we're clearing the next explosions and they were gone then the floor gave away." Yoder said with a shaky voice.

"Alright, you're gonna be ok. You good here Trent?" Jason didn't want to leave Trent here alone, but he also had to make sure the others had all the help they needed as well.

"We're good. We'll wait here until you guys come back this way. Let me know if you need me."

Jason patted Trent on the shoulder before he headed down the tunnel to join the others. Trent started to look over Yoder's head as gently as he could.

"Did you hit the front or the back of your head when you went down?" Trent asked.

"Front. You have gloves?" Yoder asked, his words starting to slur a bit.

"I'm wearing them. Don't worry."

Yoder was bleeding pretty heavily from his forehead on his left side. He would need stitches, but Trent would need to clean the wound first before he could stitch him up. In order to do that, he needed to actually see with more than a flashlight.

"Clay told you?"

"He did, but only me. He also told me about the previous skull fracture to the back of your head."

"Didn't hit the back. Rubble hit my ribs and legs, legs are bruised but nothing is broken. Ribs hurt the most."

"You definitely have some broken." Trent said, as he gently pulled up the side of Yoder's shirt and could see the bruising.

He then started to remove Yoder from his vest and plate so he would be able to better see his torso to ensure he wasn't bleeding internally. Trent was very pleased to see that the bruising was focused around his ribs and not his stomach. He didn't appear to be bleeding internally, but he had a few broken ribs, four from what Trent could tell. He couldn't do anything for his ribs right now so Trent continued to check the rest of Yoder over. Twenty minutes later Brock was back with Cerberus.

"We found the others. They are banged up and injured. Jace wants you to check them over before we can move them."

"Alright, I'll head over now. He's ok just banged up and has a concussion, so keep him awake." Trent said, as he packed up his medical kit.

"Got it."

Trent headed off to find the others and check out the rest of Team Seven. Brock bent down and Cerberus went over and laid next to Yoder with his head on his leg.

"Did Trent give you some pain medication?" Brock asked.

"Ya, he gave me a shot. Is Clay ok?"

"He's alright. Worried about you, but he's ok. He's going to be very happy to see you."

"Keep him safe."

"Clay? You don't have to worry about him, we always do." Brock promised.

Brock wasn't sure why Yoder felt the need to tell him to keep Clay safe, but he wanted to make sure Yoder knew that they would. Brock wasn't blind, he knew some tension had come up within the team, but he was hoping it would resolve itself. Him, Trent and Sonny were kinda in the middle while Jason and Clay were against Ray and Vic it would seem. Brock had no idea what direction Trent would go in if there was a full split. Sonny would always stick with Clay no matter what. As for him, he loved Ray and Vic seemed like an ok guy, but he couldn't see himself going against Jason and Clay. Not when Clay meant so much to Cerberus. Brock was hoping that things would be resolved soon and there would be an all out war within Bravo.

It was a good hour later when the guys all started to make their way out of the tunnel. Trent and Sonny were carrying a litter with one guy, Brock was helping Yoder walk, Ray, Vic, Full Metal and Jason all were helping other guys as well. They all had injuries, some worse than others and they knew that all of Team Seven would be on a plane going back home tonight for medical leave. It was a mess, but they were all lucky to still be alive. Though according to Trent, some of them wouldn't have made it till the morning. They got everyone loaded up on the chopper and headed back to base.

XXX

Clay was standing outside where the choppers were kept. He couldn't help the relief that had flooded him when Jason had radioed in that they had everyone and they were all alive, banged up but alive. It was a huge weight off his shoulders to hear that Yoder was in fact going to be ok. He knew he had done the right thing by pushing to have Bravo go after them. He didn't care that Commander Hall was pissed off at him, that meant nothing to him because Yoder, his brother, was coming back home and not in a box. The second the chopper touched down Clay was walking towards them. Brock helped to get Yoder off and started to help him walk over to the building. The second Clay met up with them he gently pulled Yoder in for a hug, one he easily welcomed and returned. Brock moved back to help the others get off the chopper.

"I thought I lost you." Clay said.

"Me too for a second there." Yoder admitted.

"How bad?" Clay asked, as he pulled back to look at Yoder, but he kept his hands on him to help support him.

"Concussion and some broken ribs."

"You need to get checked out, come on."

Yoder put his arm around Clay's shoulders and Clay helped him walk towards the building. Jason, Sonny and Ray had been standing outside of the chopper watching the whole scene in front of them. Support teams had come over to help get the injured off the chopper and off for the infirmary.

"He never hugs me like that." Sonny commented.

"Yoder must be more huggable than you." Ray teased.

Jason just shook his head and Sonny could tell he was not happy right now.

"What's wrong Boss? Everyone survived and Yoder will make a full recovery." Sonny said.

"I screwed up. That's our Bravo Two. That's a B1 and B2 relationship."

That was all Jason said before he headed off towards the building to get his gear off before he would check in on everyone. Sonny looked over at Ray and he could see that Ray was upset now.

"What does that mean?" Sonny asked.

"I don't know Son. But it just might be the end of the Bravo we know."

Ray headed off, leaving Sonny to stand there all alone. He knew shit was going down between a few of them on the team, he just had no idea that everyone had felt so strongly over it all. They were still two months away from returning to the States and at this point it didn't look good for any of them.

XXX

It was the next day when Clay found himself sitting on the floor in the bathroom next to the toilet. He had been sick all night and hadn't been able to stop throwing up long enough to even get out of the bathroom. He was shaking, freezing, dizzy, his whole body hurt and a rash on his arm had started to appear. After Yoder had been checked out by the base Doc he was then put onto a plane with the others in Team Seven to head back to the States to recover at home. Yoder had a concussion and four broken ribs just like Trent had figured. He was also covered in bruises from the fall and the rubble hitting him. Clay was very thankful that he was going to be ok and that he hit the front of his head and not the back, otherwise it could have been a lot worse.

The bathroom door opened and Clay heard Sonny's voice.

"I need another eight hours of sleep."

"I told you to go to bed instead of watching that movie." Trent said.

"Trent." Clay called out as best as he could.

"Clay?" Trent asked, as he looked around.

"Third stall." Clay simply said before his stomach flipped and he moved over to the toilet to throw up once again.

At the sound both Sonny and Trent went into action and headed over to the stall that Clay was in. Trent went in to see Clay throwing up just a clear liquid. He quickly took notice of how shitty he looked.

"Go tell Jason, I'll bring him to the infirmary." Trent said.

He had no idea what was going on with Clay, but he did know this was not good. Sonny immediately headed out to find Jason, leaving Trent to handle Clay. After a moment Clay stopped throwing up and sat back.

"Talk to me Clay, how long have you been sick?"

"After Yoder left. I went to the mess to grab some water and some soup, then ten minutes later I was sick."

"What are you feeling?" Trent immediately figured it must be food poisoning.

"Dizzy, cold, my whole body hurts and this rash started not too long ago." Clay said, turning his arm so Trent could see.

Trent looked at the rash and instantly knew this wasn't food poisoning, that wouldn't cause a rash. He had to get Clay to the infirmary so his blood could be tested for whatever this could be.

"We gotta get you to the infirmary for some testing and you are dehydrated, you need an IV in. I'm gonna help you up."

Clay gave a nod, knowing there was no point in arguing with him. Trent went and helped to get Clay standing and was there to catch him when his legs gave out and the room spun. Trent went slow, but he moved as quickly as he could to get Clay to the infirmary. Once there he placed Clay down on an available bed as a doctor came over.

"Spenser, you are not looking so good. What's going on?"

"He's been sick all night. Throwing up, shaking, chills, dizziness, sore and he's got a rash on his left forearm." Trent answered.

Dr. Roth started to look Clay over, and took his temperature. "No fever so not an infection. Flu doesn't give you a rash so it's something else. Trent, get an IV going, I'm going to take some blood."

Trent put on some gloves and got to work on getting an IV into Clay while Dr. Roth worked on getting a blood sample to run. He wasn't sure what was going on with Clay right now, but something wasn't responding well within him.

"What happened?" Jason asked, as he walked into the area with the guys behind him, including Blackburn.

"He's been sick all night. No fever so no infection and the rash on his arm makes this not the flu. I'm going to run his blood and see what is going on, hopefully that will give us a place to start." Dr. Roth answered.

"Couldn't it be food poisoning?" Ray asked.

"Not with a rash. Spenser, what did you eat?" Dr. Roth asked.

"Water and soup from the mess. It's still in my room. Trent." Clay said with a shaky voice and Trent knew what that meant. He quickly grabbed the plastic tub by the bed and held it while Clay threw up more clear liquid.

"Clay have you been drinking water all night?" Dr. Roth asked.

Clay very gently shook his head as he fought to get his stomach back under control.

"What is it?" Trent asked, as he could see Dr. Roth was thinking something.

"It shouldn't be clear. His stomach should be empty, he shouldn't be throwing anything up. A clear liquid would make sense if he's drinking water all night, but he's not drinking anything." Dr. Roth looked at the others before he continued. "I need the water bottle and soup he was eating. And pull the soup out of the mess hall and bring it here."

Sonny and Brock headed out without a word to get it done.

"Why?" Jason asked.

"I'd rather not say until I have confirmation. I'll run his blood right now and that should hopefully give us the answer we are looking for. Clay when you need to throw up, throw up. Don't fight it and try to let it pass."

"You think?" Trent asked, knowing what Dr. Roth was hinting at.

"I'd like to confirm first. I could be wrong." Dr. Roth said, before he headed out and Jason moved over to his side of the bed.

"What is he thinking?" Blackburn asked Trent, as Jason got a cloth wet to place against Clay's forehead to help him feel a little bit better.

"He thinks someone put something in the water or the soup."

"So food poisoning?" Vic stated, he wasn't really sure what the big deal was. Clay was sick, so what?

"Not that type of poisoning." Trent said with an edge to his voice.

"He thinks someone spiked the soup? But with what?" Blackburn asked.

"It couldn't be in the whole soup though, we would have this place overflowing with sick personnel." Jason said.

"Which would mean someone spiked only Clay's." Ray stated.

"This tour sucks." Clay said with a shaky voice.

"We'll figure it out Sunshine, just try and sleep." Jason said, as he placed the cool cloth over Clay's forehead.

"Is there anything we can do?" Ray asked.

"All we can do is wait until the results come back." Trent answered.

Clay closed his eyes to try and will sleep to come. He felt like complete shit and all he wanted to do was just wake up and feel better. He was really sick of feeling so tired and rundown all the time anymore. The guys all stayed quiet so Clay could try and get some sleep. When Sonny and Brock came back they softly had asked what was going on and when they discovered that the doctor thought Clay could have been poisoned, words couldn't describe how pissed off Sonny was. He was able to keep it under control though as Clay seemed to have fallen into a soft sleep.

An hour later Dr. Roth was back and he walked over to them. He gave a nod to get them to follow him so they could speak without waking Clay up. The guys all left, Jason giving Clay one last quick look before he joined the others.

"Blood work came back with high levels of phosphate."

"So this is connected to his medication for the TB?" Jason asked.

"That didn't help, but no it's not. The soup he ate tested positive for phosphate, however the soup in the mess hall where it came from didn't have any levels of phosphate." Dr. Roth said.

"So what does that mean?" Vic asked.

"It means someone added the phosphate to Spenser's soup bowl. They would have done it with liquid phosphate, which is a clear liquid." Dr. Roth answered.

"That's what he's throwing up?" Full Metal asked.

"It is. Now phosphate is absorbed through your digestive tract, but if there is too much to absorb and if you are allergic to it, it can cause you to be sick. Your body is trying to get rid of it. Our body needs phosphate to help with teeth and bone strength, but we get it through the foods we eat. Now, phosphate is in plenty of things and not just medication. It will be in the food you eat, some with lower levels than others. Spenser would get trace amounts of phosphate in the foods he eats, enough to help with his bone health but not enough to bother his allergy. However, there is food with higher levels of phosphate such as seafood, whole wheat, as an additive for frozen food and processed food."

"Clay doesn't eat any of that stuff." Sonny said.

There had been a few times when the guys had wanted to grab some sushi or fish and chips, but Clay never went with them. He had no interest in it.

"With the higher levels of phosphate he wouldn't. It would have made him sick every time he ate it, and naturally you avoid food that doesn't agree with you. Now, normally if you got hit with a higher level of phosphate in your food it would normally make you not feel too great. The problem is Spenser's allergy is very serious and he already had higher levels of phosphate then he was used to because of his TB medication. The added phosphate from the soup pushed his body over the edge. His body can't process the phosphate and it is causing him to be this sick."

"How do you correct the issue?" Blackburn asked.

"We need to give him dialysis to flush out the phosphate from his system and blood."

"Seriously?" Sonny asked, that wasn't some simple no big deal treatment.

"Your kidneys work as your body's filter, getting rid of everything that could harm you. His kidneys are not able to process and filter out the phosphate from his system because there's too much of it and his body isn't used to it. The quickest and safest way to help Spenser would be dialysis where we filter the phosphate from his blood and it goes back into his body clean. He'll be tired afterwards and need to rest for a couple of days. I would also recommend he stops taking his TB medication for those couple of days to give his body a complete rest before starting up again."

"But he'll be ok afterwards?" Jason asked.

"He will be yes. Like I said he'll need rest, but he'll bounce back from it. I will also give him a mild sedative to put him to sleep so he'll sleep through most of it. His body is still rundown from being injured and sick. I just need your permission to start treatment." Dr. Roth said to Jason, as he was next of kin.

"Do what you need to do." Jason easily agreed.

"I'll start right away." Dr. Roth said, before he headed off.

"Someone poisoned him." Sonny said, pissed.

"We need to find out who." Jason said, just as pissed.

"I'll have Davis pull up the security camera footage and see if we can see who the person was that added the phosphate." Blackburn said.

"Check the social media page too. Clay's allergy isn't known outside of us, our support staff, medical or someone that has access to personnel files. The leak had to come from somewhere." Trent said.

"I'll go and talk with the kitchen staff." Vic offered.

"Full Metal, go with him." Jason said with a look that Full Metal easily read. He wasn't going because Jason didn't think Vic could handle it, he was going because there was a trust issue.

"Let's go rookie." Full Metal said, as he headed off not even bothering to wait for Vic.

Brock waited until they were gone before he spoke. "Yoder said something when we were in the tunnel alone. He asked about Clay then said keep him safe."

"You think he knew something was going to go down?" Ray asked.

"Don't know. But his only concern was Clay and not himself or the team."

"People talk more when they feel comfortable that no one dangerous could overhear. It's possible someone talked more openly with Yoder in listening range without thinking much of it." Trent said.

"We should be sending Clay home." Ray said.

"You want to send him home so he could be alone and even more vulnerable to whatever is going on right now?" Sonny asked, shocked that Ray would even be suggesting leaving their brother unprotected.

"He wouldn't be vulnerable at home. He's now been attacked twice being on base, obviously someone here has it out for him. The best thing for him would be to stay at home." Ray argued.

"Except here I can keep an eye on his health and reaction to the medication. He shouldn't be alone with having to take his TB medication. Him coming on tour was so he was monitored without having to be in a hospital. His allergy is serious." Trent explained.

"He's not going home. He's staying here where we can keep an eye on him. Blackburn will find out who poisoned his food and we will handle it. With Yoder gone, Clay is now alone in that room. Sonny, why don't you move your stuff in there so Clay won't be alone. Clay already spends his time in HAVOC when we are on an op, so he won't be alone then. Hopefully soon the Cyber Division will be able to backtrack the page and we'll know who started it so we can shut it down and make them pay." Jason said.

"I'll move my things." Sonny easily agreed.

"Jace." Ray started, but Jason cut him off.

"This conversation is over."

Jason headed off and went back over to Clay. Ray shook his head, he couldn't believe all of this was happening. He had no idea how they were ever going to work things out. Trent went over to join Jason so he would be able to keep track of the dialysis and be there in case something else happened while Clay's body was being cleansed of the phosphate. Sonny, Brock and Ray all headed off to go their own separate ways. Sonny wanted to move his things, Brock had to feed Cerberus and Ray needed to call Naima to try and make some sense of all of this.

It was six hours later when Blackburn arrived back at the infirmary to check in on Clay and inform Jason what they had discovered. Blackburn saw that it was just Jason and Trent in the room and Clay was hooked up still to the dialysis machine.

"How is he?" Blackburn asked softly. He knew Clay was sedated, but it was only a mild one.

"No negative reaction so far. A few more hours and he'll be off the machine and awake. Once he's awake he should be able to get moved back to his room." Trent answered.

"Good."

"What did you find?" Jason asked.

"Cameras in the mess are not that great. We don't tend to have many cameras on base. The only shot we have is the back of the worker, who is a civilian. We asked around and was able to discover it was, Matthew Markle, he has been working for the military as a civilian worker for three years now. I questioned him and all he would say is that someone paid him to put the liquid into Clay's soup as a prank. He swore he had no idea anything bad would happen. Turns out this isn't the first time he's taken money to do something against the rules for a sailor or soldier. He is being shipped out and fired for it."

"For fucksakes. Did he give up a name?" Jason asked, pissed off about all of this.

"Nope, refused to get anyone into trouble. We looked at the social media page and people were commenting about the so-called prank. There was an anonymous post about Clay's allergy before the prank was done and the same commenter put up a post a few hours ago about how he told them it would work. Another commented that they'll run Clay down until he gives up and quits." Blackburn said, he was not impressed at all about any of this.

"Something has to be done about this shit. We can't just keep waiting around for someone to try something else." Jason said.

He couldn't believe all of this shit was going on. You would expect it from middle schoolers, but not a bunch of grown adults. It was bullshit, complete bullshit and someone in the Upper Brass needed to do something about this and soon. This time around Clay was just very sick, but if they had put more in it then they did, it could have been deadly for him.

"I've informed Lindell and he was going to inform Admiral Anderson about all of this. They are going to handle it. They have some of the names from commenters that haven't hidden their name, they are going to make examples out of them. We will get a handle on this." Blackburn promised.

No one was happy about this, but that was the only thing they could do. They would be keeping a very close eye on Clay and anyone that was around him. They weren't going to leave him unprotected again, even when he was on base. No one was going to be getting to their brother again.

XXX

It was a couple of days later when Clay was in his room laying down in bed. He had been resting for the past couple of days after getting out of the infirmary. Once he was woken up he felt a lot better, his stomach wasn't upset anymore so Clay was thankful for that much. Jason and Trent had explained what had happened and what would be happening. Clay still couldn't believe all of this, but at least he was able to start to feel better. He was also going to have to be careful with getting his food at the mess. The guys said they would be picking it up to avoid a repeat of this situation. Sonny also moved into his room so Clay wouldn't be alone at night when he was asleep. It would also allow them to have some time together and work on their relationship again.

Clay closed his laptop as the door opened. Sonny walked in with a water bottle for Clay and himself. He handed it to Clay as he spoke.

"How you feeling?"

"A lot better. I'll have to start my TB meds again tomorrow, which sucks, but I have to get rid of the TB." Clay said with a shrug.

"A necessary evil. Were you writing?" Sonny asked, as he collapsed down onto his bed.

"No, I was video chatting with Yoder. He got released from the hospital this morning. I just wanted to check in."

"How is he?"

"Sore and exhausted, but he'll make a full recovery. All of the guys will. Team Seven is going to be a mess for the next six months until everyone is able to come back. Yoder said the guys would all be floating around between the Seal Teams until at least five of them are ready to return. Yoder has the least amount of injuries so he's only out for eight weeks."

"So he can be active once we return from tour. That's not too bad. Broken ribs are terrible, but could have been a lot worse. I'm glad he'll be ok, that everyone will be. How are you doing with all of this?"

Clay hadn't really talked much about what had been happening in the past couple of days. It seemed like he was in this foggy state about all of it.

"I don't know. I'm glad Yoder is ok, that it wasn't worse. Terrified the hell out of me, but it's not the first time and unfortunately it won't be the last. As for the soup issue, I don't know what to think or feel about it right now. It's gonna take some time." Clay answered honestly.

Sonny could understand where Clay was coming from. He hadn't really had much of a chance to process everything from the past few days. It was a lot to take in for anyone, but everything was piling on Clay recently and Sonny was really hoping he would catch a break soon. If anyone needed a break, it was Clay.

"We're waiting for more information before we can do anything, you wanna go and watch a movie with the guys?" Sonny offered.

"Ah… ya sure."

Clay didn't want to do much right now, but hanging out with the guys watching a movie sounded pretty good. It would also let him get up and move around a bit before he could catch some sleep without having to listen to a lecture from Trent about needing to move around. Clay and Sonny got up and headed down to the team lounge where they could relax and hang out with their brothers. Clay was really hoping the rest of tour was going to go smoothly and they could all go home healthy, safe and in one piece.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter I wanted to focus on Clay and Emma’s relationship. I also wanted to give you a more family feel in this chapter. It took me forever to write because there were so many fluffy moments and for me that takes a lot of effort. I’m used to writing more dark moments. This story though is fully written. There are a total of ten chapters before it will come to an end and then a sequel will be written. Enjoy!

Clay was gathering his things as they were about to land. He was very happy that they were finally getting back home. He was looking forward to seeing his new house and showing it to everyone. He was also looking forward to seeing Yoder. They had talked many times over the past two months and he was very happy that Yoder was almost all healed up. Clay was happy that nothing else had happened on base for the rest of their tour. The guys had been very protective of him. He wasn’t even allowed to get his own food just in case someone tried to slip him something again. It was going to be good to be back home where he could get his new place set up and go back to doing missions. Being stuck in medical for a full tour was not fun at all. He was finally healthy again and would be cleared by their Doc Monday to return to duty. What Clay was worried about though was the team and the tension within it. 

Everyone could tell that there was tension within the team, especially between Jason and Ray and Clay had a good feeling it had to do with him. The very last thing Clay wanted to do was cause problems for the team, they were his family, his brothers, he never wanted to be the cause of stress or a fracture in their family. Clay couldn’t help it, he just didn’t trust Vic, but maybe he would have to suck it up and try to get to know him. Maybe he could build trust with him, afterall Ray vouched for him and Ray was a great judge of character. If it hadn’t been for Ray pushing Jason to have him on the team, he would be stuck in Charlie. He owed it to the guys to try his best to put whatever feelings he had towards Vic to bed and try to get to know him. 

Jason walked over to Clay as he was finishing packing up. He was very happy to be getting back home where he didn’t have to worry about someone trying to attack Clay one way or the other. He was also looking forward to the few days break from everyone. The tension within the team was draining and he just wanted to get home. 

“You alright Sunshine?”

“I’m good.”

“Really? Because you looked pretty lost in thought there.” Jason said, as he sat down on a crate.

“I don’t like being the cause of tension.” Clay admitted.

“You’re not. We’ve had problems over the years we’ve been friends, Ray and me always work it out. It’s not you.”

“Come on dad, we’re fracturing and you know it. Ray and Vic spend all their time together. Sonny refuses to talk to Vic unless he has to. You and Ray aren’t talking, Ray doesn’t want to talk to me. Trent and Brock are keeping to each other to avoid the landmines everywhere. Hell, even Full Metal is hanging out with other people. It’s a damn fucking miracle that we’re all on this plane and no one is in a box. All of this started because my issue with Vic. This is completely my fault and maybe it is a good thing that I’ll be teaching Green Team. Give everyone the chance to gel back together.”

“It is not your fault. You are not the first person to have a problem with someone on the team. It happens all the time on Tier One teams, it happens on any team when you get different personalities in a group. You don’t trust Vic, something feels off with him and you aren’t the only one that feels that way. Yoder got the same vibe, that’s two highly trained operatives getting a bad vibe from someone. That’s not something I take lightly, especially because he is around my family.”

“Regardless, it started between us and it needs to end. That’s the only way the team is going to get back to proper function. From now on, I’m just gonna treat him like I do everyone else and who knows, maybe one day it will be natural. Fake it until you make it right?”

“That’s generally not a rule for making friends.”

“Ya well it is today. I mean, the guy made it this far right? So he had to make it past the application process for Green Team, the interview, he had to make it past Big Chief and the other instructors and SERE training. He got through all of that just like every single one of us so how bad could he really be?”

“Him giving you dirty looks doesn’t really inspire confidence in me.” Jason countered.

“He’s not the first person to give me a dirty look and he won’t be the last. I get judged all the time because of my name, we could have just gotten off on the wrong foot. Maybe a fresh start is what everyone needs. At least then I can say I tried if it doesn’t work out. I owe that much to the guys.”

Jason let out a sigh before he gave a nod. He hated that Clay was right, but he was. If Clay did everything he could to make it work, it would be easier for the guys to accept that they needed to switch Vic out for Yoder. Still, he hated that Clay felt like he needed to be the bigger man in this when he was the one with the bad vibes from Vic. Still, and like always, Jason would support Clay and his decisions. Clay finished packing and when the plane touched down him and Jason made their way down towards the others as the plane moved down the runway. 

“So family barbeque at my new place tomorrow?” Clay said to the others.

“Um, I don’t know man.” Ray said, and it was clear that everyone was not feeling time together. Clay couldn’t blame them after the tour they just had.

“Come on Ray, we cannot keep denying Vic the deliciousness of Sonny’s barbeque.” Clay said with a warm smile.

“Would be a crime for the new guy to miss out.” Trent said. He wasn’t sure what brought the change in Clay, but he was more than happy to try and get back to normal.

“Kids can go swimming too if they want. It’s a walk out beach, they can go two hundred yards before it starts to get deep for em.” Clay added.

“What do you say Eric, a barbeque at Clay’s new place tomorrow night?” Jason said, to Blackburn as him, Mandy and Davis walked by.

“Sounds good. Text me what I can bring and when and where.” Blackburn said.

“Me too and if Sonny is taking requests, I would kill for some ribs.” Davis said with a warm smile.

“Alright, alright. I’ll cook, but the kid is supplying the beer and none of that hoppy shit.” Sonny said to Clay.

“Oh take it up with Vic.” Clay said with a smile.

“Why me?” Vic asked, confused.

“You just did your first tour with us, you have no idea how many cases of beer that cost you.” Clay said with a smile.

“Twenty-two, I was keeping track.” Brock supplied. 

“Seriously?” Vic asked.

“Every rookie gets the honor of supplying us the beer.” Sonny said.

“Be happy it’s only twenty-two, I had over thirty. They even made me buy a case of beer for getting in my first helo crash with them.” Clay supplied.

“That’s just wrong.” Vic agreed.

The doors opened and everyone started to make their way out. They saw Yoder standing there with a warm smile on his face. Clay instantly spoke as he went over to him.

“How are you feeling?” 

“I’m good, I get to go back to work on Monday for active duty.” Yoder answered, as he pulled Clay in for a hug.

“That’s awesome man, me too. Who are you going to be rolling with?”

Clay knew that Team Seven weren’t all ready to return to active duty yet so Yoder would have to be floating for a few more weeks at least.

“Don’t know yet, I’ll find out Monday.” Yoder answered, as he pulled back.

He gave the guys a nod as they headed off the plane. The guys, except for Vic, all gave Yoder a pat on his shoulder as a welcome. 

“Tomorrow I’m having a barbeque at the new house. You should come by and bring Ali. I’d love to meet him.” Clay said, as the guys started to head out. Jason stayed though, as he was gonna grab some food with Clay.

“Um, maybe.” Yoder said, and it was clear he was unsure how the other guys would react to it.

“Bring him, they don’t care. Come on, it’s been three months, I want to meet him. And you get to check out my new place with barbecue and beer. How can you turn that down?” Clay said, with a big smile.

Yoder let out a small sigh before he spoke. “Alright, we’ll come by. Text me the info.”

“It’ll be fine, don’t worry.” Clay said.

“He’s right, we don’t care if you are gay. Just be you.” Jason added. It wasn't his place to jump into a conversation, but he didn’t want Yoder thinking he had to keep parts of himself hidden either. 

“Alright, I’ll bring him. Text me the address and if there’s anything I can bring. And as much as I would like to keep chatting, I’m actually here because I get to help unload the plane.” Yoder said with a warm smile.

“The joys of being on medical leave. Don’t worry come Monday you’ll be back to being badass.” Clay said with a smile.

“That makes two of us.” Yoder said, as he gave Clay’s shoulder a pat as he headed off to the plane.

“Let’s get out of here.” Jason said, more than happy to get away for the next three days. They both headed off for the gates as Jason spoke. “Why don’t we head over to your new house and check it out. Afterwards we can grab some breakfast before going over to the apartment and grabbing what you need.”

“Sounds good. It will be nice to see the house in person.”

“You haven’t seen it?” Jason asked, surprised that Clay bought a house without even looking at it.

“I’ve seen the photos and I’ve driven by it a few times. I’ve had my eye on it for a while. I was hoping it would go up for sale one day. I’ve seen a virtual tour of it.” 

“Wow.” Jason said, completely shocked. Clay was not the type of person that did anything without research or looking into it properly. The fact that he would purchase a house, a major life decision, without actually seeing it was blowing his mind.

“Every now and then I do something against my nature. Besides, it’s the view of the ocean that is the appeal. If the inside if ugly and not at all like the pictures, I can just fix it up. It passed inspections and the roof is only two years old. The high ticket price is because it’s a hundred feet of sand going to the ocean. That’s why I bought the house.” Clay explained.

“It will be nice to be able to hear the waves against the beach. Plus, we’ll now have one hell of a party house.” Jason said, as they walked out of the gate. 

The second they were around the corner Jason couldn’t help the huge smile on his face. There sitting on the tailgate of his truck was Emma and Mickey. The second the kids saw them, they both got off the truck and headed towards Jason and Clay.

“Hey, what a great surprise.” Jason said, as Mickey ran into his dad’s arms. 

Clay pulled Emma in for a hug as Mickey spoke. “Em picked me up from school. She said we were gonna surprise you guys.”

“How did you get here?” Jason asked, as they switched kids.

“I drove Clay’s truck. He left the keys for me.” Emma answered, as she hugged her dad.

“You knew about this?” Jason said to Clay.

“For months now.” Clay said, as he hugged Mickey. “How’s school?” Clay asked Mickey.

“Good. I got an A on my math test.” 

“Nice job man.” Clay said, as he high fived Mickey.

“Good job. What about you Em?” Jason asked, as they headed off for the trucks.

“Everything in school is going well. I’m home for the weekend before I have to get back.”

Clay wrapped his arm around Emma’s shoulders as they went to Jason’s truck.

“Sounds good. Clay’s got a new house that we are going to check out real quick before we grab some food. Tomorrow we’re having a barbeque at the house with the whole team. They are gonna be excited to see you guys.” Jason explained.

“Sounds good.” Emma said, with a warm smile.

“I’m excited to see the house.” Mickey said.

“Me too man. I’ll take my truck, do you want to follow me?” Clay said to Jason.

“Sure.” 

“I’ll go with Clay.” Emma said.

“Yes shotgun.” Mickey said, as he headed over to the passenger side door. The others gave a smile and a slight chuckle at that.

“I’ll see you there.” Clay said, as him and Emma made their way over to his truck.

They all got in and headed off for Clay’s new house. Both trucks had small talk going on in them. When they arrived at Clay’s house, everyone was shocked at how beautiful it was. It was mostly all one level, with the exception of the back facing the ocean, it was two levels. It was a pretty blue color with a single car garage, but room for four more cars in the driveway. They all got out and headed over to the right where the gate was to head into the main property.

“This place looks great.” Jason said, as Clay unlocked the gate.

They walked in and instantly saw the in ground pool with the patio seating. They headed to the main door and walked into the beautiful home. 

“Wow.” Emma said, as she took in the room.

The living room and kitchen was all an open concept. There was a built in real fireplace in the living room to provide some warmth in the winter. The back wall was all windows that were sliding so you could open up the whole room to the outside if you wanted to. The downstairs had three bedrooms and two bathrooms, all were very well done. They headed upstairs to see another full kitchen and living room, along with four bedrooms and three bathrooms. The Master Bedroom was massive with its own balcony and master bathroom with a separate glass shower stall and a jacuzzi tub big enough for three people. In the upstairs living room there was a double french door leading to the massive back deck that went all over the back of the house. 

“This place is amazing.” Jason said, as they walked out onto the deck.

The deck had patio furniture already. The best part was the view. You could see nothing but blue ocean water for miles in the distance. They headed down the stairs to see more seating, an outdoor kitchen and a bar. There was also a fire pit off to the right of the deck. There was a wooden walkway all the way down to the public section of the beach. The whole backyard was nothing but sand. 

“This is better than the photos.” Clay said, as he took it all in. He couldn’t believe this was his house. He had dreamed about owning a house like this, but he never thought it would happen. Now thanks to a very successful book he was able to achieve the impossible and buy his own slice of heaven.

“You have enough room for a volleyball net.” Mickey said.

“Ya that sounds good. Have some games of beach volleyball.” Clay agreed.

“This place is unbelievable.” Emma said, as she took it all in.

Jason wrapped an arm around Clay’s shoulders as he spoke. “It’s a piece of heaven. I’m proud of you son.” 

“Thanks Dad. And I have spare keys for everyone, you guys are welcome here anytime you want.” 

“Really? Awesome.” Mickey said with a big smile.

“Alright, let’s go grab some breakfast. We got a lot of work to do today to get this one all moved in.” Jason said, looking to get them started.

He would have loved to spend the day sitting outback, but they needed to get Clay moved out of his apartment. Afterwards, he would be having a beer sitting outside with a nice fire going. One thing was for sure, this was the best way to be spending his first day back from tour, with his whole family.

XXX

It was six that night when everyone within Bravo had arrived at Clay’s new house. The day had been great with Clay, Jason, Emma and Mickey hanging around outside and going into the beach. It was around two in the afternoon when Ray and Naima showed up with the kids. The kids were already in their bathing suits and were very excited for the beach, not that Clay could blame them; it was his favorite part too. Sonny had taken his rightful place at the grill getting the ribs and burgers cooked. It smelt amazing and the guys all couldn’t wait to chow down. Clay had gone and grabbed a beer for himself and one for Emma. They hadn’t had any beer yet, both opting for waiting until they started to eat. Compared to some of the guys. Clay headed back over and went to hand Emma the beer when Jason’s voice stopped him.

“Hold up, what are you doing?” 

“She’s nineteen, I didn’t think you would care.” Clay said.

“Drinking age is twenty-one last time I checked.” Jason commented back.

“I’ve had beer before Dad.” Emma said.

“Not under my roof.” 

“It’s not technically your roof.” Ray pointed out.

“Not the point.” Jason said, with a pointed look at Ray.

“Alright how about this, if she can knock Vic on his ass, she gets a beer.” Clay suggested.

The guys gave a chuckle to that. “You actually think she could knock me down? Seriously?” Vic said, as he laughed. 

“Oh I’m serious.” Clay turned to look at Jason. “How about it?”

“Alright, fine. If she can get Vic on his back, she’s earned the right to drink tonight.” Jason easily agreed.

He wasn’t worried, there was no way in hell that Emma was going to be able to take Vic down. Even though Vic was on the smaller side, he was still a highly trained Tier One operator. There was no way. 

“Really?” Vic said, shocked that Jason was going to allow this.

“What’s wrong, you scared little boy?” Emma challenged. 

Clay just smirked. This was going to be so good. He knew that Emma would be fine and he was excited to watch Vic get taken down by, in Vic’s opinion, a girl. 

“Of a girl? No, not now, not ever. You won’t take me down, all you will get is tossed on your ass.” Vic said in a slight condescending tone.

“You know that is just exactly why I don’t like you. Let’s go little boy.” Emma said, as she put her hair up in a ponytail so it would be out of her way.

The guys all ooed or awed as Emma got ready. Vic looked over at Jason as he spoke. “Am I going to be in trouble if she gets hurt by accident?”

The last thing Vic wanted to do was get in trouble because it was Clay’s stupid idea.

“You won’t be. Clay on the other hand will be running hills until he’s bleeding from his eyeballs.” Jason said, with a pointed look at Clay.

Clay just shrugged his shoulders, he knew Jason wouldn’t make him run hills even if Emma got hurt. Plus he wasn’t worried about Emma getting hurt. Vic gave a smirk at Clay as he headed over to Emma. Clay knew Vic was going to be trying to hurt Emma just so he would be in trouble. Clay spoke as he pulled out his cell phone so he could record this.

“Il laisse tomber ses épaules quand il va se déplacer dans cette direction.” (He drops his shoulders when he goes in that direction.)

“Merci mec.” (Thanks bro.)

“What did you just say?” Vic asked, not speaking french.

“He said you should learn a new language.” Emma said with a smirk.

“Oh man this is gonna be good.” Sonny said, as he pulled out his own cell phone to record it.

“Whenever you guys are ready.” Clay said, looking to get things started.

Everyone watched as Vic didn’t even hesitate to go after Emma. Emma watched for what direction Vic was going to go in. She saw his right shoulder drop just slightly and then she made her move like Clay had taught her. She shot out her right fist and landed a solid punch on Vic’s nose, blinding him for a second. She then grabbed his right arm and shoulder and then flipped Vic over her back, he landed on his back, but she kept her hand on his arm and she twisted it, rolling Vic onto his stomach and she held his arm straight up in the air, twisting it so he wouldn’t be able to move.

“Oh!” Sonny yelled, with a big smile.

Everyone cheered as Emma stood there over Vic, who had a mouth full of sand and blood coming down his face. Clay could tell he was pissed, but it was so worth it. 

“Damn, she's just as deadly as you.” Full Metal said to Jason.

Emma let Vic’s arm go as Jason spoke, looking at Clay.

“You taught her how to fight?” 

“Who me? I would never.” Clay said innocently.

“Bullshit.” Sonny commented.

Emma walked over to Clay, who handed her a beer as she spoke. “Well I did win.” 

Clay and Emma clicked their beers together before they took a drink and headed off to grab some food.

“Well, you just got played brother.” Ray said with a smile.

“Ya, ya I did. But, it was fun to watch.” Jason said, before he looked over at Vic, who was clearly pissed off about all of this. He had sand stuck to his face and blood was going down it from his nose. Emma had landed a solid punch.

“Go on inside and get cleaned up. I’ll make you a drink and get you some ice for your nose.” Jason offered.

Vic didn’t say anything, he just headed inside. 

“Man, he’s gonna moop about that for the rest of the night.” Trent commented.

“He’ll be fine. It’s all in good fun. Let’s get some food before it gets cold.” Jason said.

Everyone got up and made their way to grab something to eat. The younger kids had already eaten earlier so they wouldn’t have to wait so long for the food to be ready. Jason had to admit he was unsure about Clay’s idea for a family barbecue at first, but now he could see it really was a good idea. This was exactly what they needed to move forward and forget about the train wreck that was their last tour.

XXX

It was roughly an hour later when Yoder walked through the backyard to join the others with his boyfriend Ali. Clay gave them both a warm smile as he saw them walking in. Everyone turned to see who Clay was looking at, as he made his way over to them. They all recognized Yoder, but they were not expecting to see Ali. 

“Hey, you guys made it.” Clay said, as he went and gave Yoder a hug.

“I told you we would. This is Ali. Ali, this is Clay.” Yoder said, as he pulled back.

Alex, aka Ali, was the exact opposite from the men that Yoder had dated in the past. He was short, roughly five foot five, and only a hundred and twenty pounds. He was known as a spinner, when Yoder normally dated more muscular manly men. Ali was very much man pretty, but more pretty than Clay. He had soft porcelain skin, with short black hair around the bottom, but had it a bit longer on top so it was styled with a bit of a wave to it. Both of his ears were pierced with black gemmed studs. He was also wearing soft makeup and his lashes were as long as Emma’s. As for his clothes, he had on a black lace t-shirt with black skinny jeans and black stiletto high heels. He could have easily passed for a woman he was that pretty. 

“It’s great to finally meet you.” Clay said, as he went in for a hug.

“Same. I have heard so much about you.” Ali said, warmly.

“Bro, this place is amazing.” Yoder said, as he took in the outside.

“It’s amazing on the inside too. You should check it out.” Clay said, before he turned his attention back to Ali. “Ali, this is Bravo. That’s Sonny, Ray and his wife Naima and his daughter Jameelah and RJ. Then we have Trent, Brock and Cerberus, Full Metal, Lisa, Mandy, Vic. That is Eric our Commanding Officer, and last but not least, Jason, my dad and my kid brother Mickey and my sister Emma.” Clay said, pointing to each one.

“It is a pleasure to meet all of you. And thank-you for everything you do for this country. It’s truly amazing.” Ali said, sincerely.

“It’s nice to meet you. We got beer and food if you are hungry.” Jason said, doing his best to get used to Ali’s look and not letting it show. 

He told Yoder to bring his boyfriend with him so he could be around people that wouldn’t be bothered by him being gay. He didn’t expect for his boyfriend to look like this. He was still ok with Yoder being gay, that wasn’t a problem to him at all. What counted was how you could handle yourself in the field and if you could keep your brothers safe. Yoder had proven he could do that, and that was good enough for him. 

“Appreciate it. I would not say no to a good beer.” Ali said.

“I got you.” Yoder said, as he went and grabbed them both a beer.

“You’re pretty.” Jameelah said with a big smile.

“Thank-you Sweetie. You are a beautiful little girl. How old are you?” Ali said with a warm smile.

“Six. How old are you?”

“I’m twenty-five.” Ali answered as Yoder handed him a beer.

“Ah a real beer, not that hoppy crap. You’re alright.” Sonny said proudly.

Ali gave a laugh at that, as Yoder had one of the craft beers that Clay liked to drink

“These are good I’ll have you know.” Yoder said in his own defense. 

The guys all gave a chuckle to that before Naima spoke. “It’s getting late babe, I gotta get the kids home.” 

“Awe, do we have to?” Jameelah whined.

“Yes we do unfortunately. It’s already past your bedtime and we still need to give you both a bath from all the salt water you both have been swimming in. Don’t worry, Uncle Clay isn’t going to move. You can always come back to play on the beach again.” Naima said.

“Ok.” Jameelah said, but it was clear she wasn’t happy about it.

“Don’t worry, you guys will be back soon enough. And the next time you do come by I’ll probably have that volleyball net too. I can pick up some badminton racquets too and we can have some real fun.” Clay said with a warm smile to his pseudo niece.

“Yay!” Jameelah cheered as she went and gave Clay a hug. Jameelah turned to Ali as she spoke again. “Will you be there?”

“Oh honey you could not keep me away from a good game of badminton. I’m a killer at it.” Ali said with a big smile.

“I want you on my team.” Jameelah said with pure confidence.

“You got it honey.” Ali said with a wink.

“It was lovely meeting you both. I’m sorry it had to be so short.” Naima said, as she took RJ.

“It’s no problem. It was nice meeting you and the little ones.” Yoder said with a kind smile.

Naima and Ray got to work on getting the kids all organized and into the car. Mickey turned to his dad and tugged on his arm for Jason to come down closer to him.

“Ya?” Jason asked.

“Is that a guy or a girl?” Mickey whispered just loud enough for his dad to hear him.

“It’s a guy.” Jason whispered back.

“Why is he wearing makeup and girl clothes?” Mickey asked, confused.

“It’s his style. I’ll explain later.” 

Jason knew this was going to be confusing for the younger kids. He suspected that Ray was going to be having a similar conversation with Jameelah within the next day or two. He would explain it all to Mickey tomorrow so he would understand. 

“Can I go watch TV now?” Mickey asked.

Jason gave a nod and Mickey headed inside. Jason looked back up and saw that Clay had an arm around Emma’s shoulders and they were heading for the beach, Cerberus right behind them. Cerberus hadn’t left Clay alone since the moment they had arrived. Yoder and Ali had headed inside, Jason figured they were going to look around. The guys all watched as Clay and Emma sat down in the sand where the water wouldn’t get them. Emma had her left leg bent up and Clay wrapped his arm around her knee, putting them close enough to chat. 

“Doesn’t it bother you?” Vic asked, Jason.

“Does what bother me?” Jason asked.

“Clay clearly having feelings for your daughter. I mean, doesn't it bother you that he wants in her pants?” Vic asked.

The question caused all of the guys to laugh, Jason included. Ray came back confused about what seemed to be so funny.

“What’s so funny?” Ray asked.

“The rookie thinks Clay is trying to fuck Emma.” Full Metal explained.

“Way off base on that one there brother.” Ray immediately said.

“Oh come on, look at them. They’ve been flirting all day, they’ve been drinking after each other. She even went into the bathroom while he was in the shower.” Vic said slowly, like he had to spell it all out for them.

“That’s his sister. They only see each other as siblings. You just heard Clay call her his sister to Ali. There are zero sexual feelings between them.” Jason said. 

He knew it was a little different, their relationship. At first he was concerned about any romantic feelings between them, but it was proven pretty quickly that they didn’t see each other in that sense. They were brother and sister, but they were also like best friends. Clay had no problem helping with homework, or going to the mall shopping. He could talk about girly stuff without a single hesitation. Clay being so easygoing made them closer.

“I don't know any siblings that are that close.” Vic said, still unsure. He didn’t care either way, but it was another spot he could use to try and pull Clay away from the team.

“They’re siblings but they are also best friends.” Davis said.

“Ah, excuse you, Clay and I are best friends.” Sonny corrected.

“You are his guy best friend, Emma is his girl best friend. It’s different. With you he can talk about his work and girls, get drunk and do stupid things. But with Emma, he can talk about his intellectual interests and get a girl’s perspective with relationship problems. He gets to listen to her gossip and have a different type of conversation. Everyone has a guy and girl best friend, that’s just how it works.” Davis explained with a shrug of her shoulders. 

“I can talk about his intellectual interests.” Sonny said, slightly offended.

“You can’t even pronounce the name of the book he is reading.” Davis challenged.

“That’s because it’s in another language. I swear he carries those books around so he can kill someone with it when he runs out of ammo. I’ve seen phone books smaller than that thing.” Sonny said in his defense.

“It’s like two thousand pages. It’s a very old book that was originally in five parts, but all of the volumes were put together in one book a few years ago. I don’t know, Clay’s really into it. I stopped trying to understand his tastes in books.” Jason said.

It seemed like when he finally figured out what genre Clay liked to read, he would read something completely different. 

“He has an eclectic taste.” Yoder said, as him and Ali came back outside.

“Meaning?” Full Metal asked.

“Meaning he loves to read anything with words in it. Once on tour Clay read through the three books he had brought, I walked in on him reading the dictionary. He just likes to read and once he reads it he can recall it.” Yoder said, as he sat down. Ali sat down on his leg and leaned against his shoulder, putting an arm around Yoder.

“Really? I didn’t know that.” Jason said, that was something he should have known.

“He doesn’t talk about it, honestly I don’t think he even notices all that often. I always suspected he had a photographic memory or even an eidetic one, but he’s never had an interest in being tested for either. It’s why he can recall everything in an operation file from reading it just once.” Yoder said.

“He’s never said anything.” Ray said.

“And he won’t. Brian and me have asked him in the past about it, but he’s always blown it off. Honestly, I think it’s a combination of him not really seeing the signs because he’s on the spectrum and him just not interested in knowing.” Yoder said with a shrug.

“I can understand not seeing it fully because of his mind, but he always has questions and wants to know everything. This is something pretty big to ignore.” Jason said.

“You know what he can be like when it comes to self-discovery. It takes him a bit to really want to dig deep, especially when it comes to his mind. He loves that he is smart, I mean he’s a certified genius, but it scares him at the same time. His mind remembers everything he reads and sees, that wouldn’t be a big deal if he was a sheltered author. He’s not though, he’s been seeing horrific things since he was a small boy and all of that is locked away in his mind. I think he’s scared that if he goes searching for answers or learns something new about his mind, even if that is confirming what he suspects, that it’ll unlock all of those boxes. He has a hard enough time functioning with his mind every day and getting the noise quiet. He doesn’t want something else he has to cope with. Brian and me have always just played along. It wasn’t worth pushing when his mental health was on the line.”

“It’s something to keep an eye on. If he doesn’t want to get tested, that’s his choice. I'm not going to push it.” Jason said. He wasn’t going to push Clay to do anything he wasn’t ready for. If he didn’t want to know, then he didn’t have to know. 

“As for his taste in books, he likes to read anything. He actually learnt Mandarin just so he could read a book that held the record for being on a global best seller’s list the longest. At the same time, he’ll read romance novels or medieval novels. He loved reading the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. I’m thinking for Christmas this year I’m gonna get him the Harry Potter series. He’s never even seen the movies. Same as the Hobbit or the Lord of the Rings.”

“Really?” Ali asked.

“Yup, he always says there’s no point in seeing the movies when he can read the book. I’m still trying to teach him the joys of watching entertainment movies and tv shows, versus educational ones.” Yoder said.

“He watches football now though so that’s progress.” Trent commented.

“He reads while pretending he is watching football.” Sonny corrected.

“Still progress, he used to leave the room.” Ray commented,

“It takes time. He’ll get there.” Jason said.

He knew Clay still had a long way to go before he was fully social, but at the same time Jason was really proud of how far Clay had come. He still had some areas that he needed to work on, like Yoder said, he wasn't good with entertainment movies and TV. Jason felt like it would help to quiet his mind if he could just get Clay to see it can be good for him. There were plenty of times where Clay needed to turn his mind off, and if he didn’t have a book, TV or movies was a great way to shut your mind off from the world. Clay was reading to escape reality, TV and movies could do that for him as well. He could still escape within that reality. 

“Still don't get how he would be interested in talking gossip with Em.” Sonny commented.

“Wait, they’re talking gossip?” Ali asked, as he sat up straight.

“Probably.” Sonny said with a shrug.

“Girl, why am I still sitting here? I love me some gossip.” Ali said with a big smile as he got up and kicked his feet out of his heels and headed towards Emma and Clay.

Yoder smiled as he watched Ali go and join his little brother on the beach. Ali sat with his back towards the water in the sand with Clay on his right and Emma on his left. Both Emma and Clay smiled as he joined them so Yoder knew they weren’t talking about anything too personal. Yoder turned his attention back to the guys.

“I apologise now for any questions your kids are going to have about myself or Ali.” Yoder said.

“You never gotta apologise for that brother. There’s nothing wrong with you being gay or with Ali. As for questions, RJ is too young and Jameelah thinks he is amazing and has really nice clothes.” Ray said with a warm smile.

“Mickey has questions, I’ll explain it to him tomorrow. Don’t worry about it. It’s important that he learns about different people in the world. I don’t want him to be intolerant or ignorant about different sexualities and races. Neither one of you should have to hide or feel like you have to be someone other than yourselves.” Jason added.

“I appreciate that.” Yodder said with a smile. 

It was really nice to finally be around people that didn’t care that he was gay. He wasn't sure about bringing Ali here with him tonight. He knew Ali was different then most people would expect and he didn't know how the guys would react to it. He was very happy that he had been brave enough to bring Ali with him. It warmed his heart to see Ali and Clay getting along so well too. He knew Clay would be fine with it, he was always fine with unique people. It was just another reason why Yoder loved him. 

Everyone spent the next few hours talking and just relaxing on the beach with a fire going. It was just before midnight when Ali, Emma and Clay came back up to join the others. Ali was instantly at Yoder’s side and Yoder gave Ali a small kiss to the lips as he sat down on his leg again. 

“Ali was telling us about his show tomorrow night.” Clay started, as he grabbed him and Emma a water before sitting down next to Emma.

“It’s going to be awesome, he has a great voice.” Yoder said proudly.

“You sing Ali?” Jason asked. 

“I do. Tomorrow night I will be headlining a drag show at one of the gay clubs. Emmy and Clay said they were gonna come too.” 

“Really?” Yoder asked them.

“Hell ya, wouldn’t miss it.” Clay said with a smile.

“I’m looking forward to it. Especially because this one.” Emma said, as she poked Clay’s arm. “Will have to dress up in drag to be allowed in. And that is something I have to see.” Emma had a huge smile on her face at just the idea.

“Ho what?” Sonny asked, with a huge smile.

“It’s not the first time I’ve dressed in drag. I’ve done it a couple of times with Yoder back in California. It’s no big deal.” Clay said, as he sat back.

“Oh please tell me you are going to take pictures.” Sonny said to Jason.

“Oh there’s going to be many, many pictures.” Jason had a huge smile on his face at just the thought of seeing Clay all dragged out. That’s when something just clicked in his head. “Wait a club? How are you going to get in?” Jason asked, Emma.

“Oh, I don’t need an ID to get in.” Emma said dismissively.

“Ya and she’ll be with me so you know she will be safe.” Clay added.

“I know she will be. I don’t believe they are just going to let you in without an ID.” Jason commented.

“She’ll be fine.” Clay said with a smile.

“Ya, I’m thinking someone has a fake ID.” Full Metal said.

“Who me? I would never.” Emma said innocently.

“Bullshit.” Sonny said.

It was clear to everyone that Emma had a fake ID and Clay totally knew about it. Jason was letting it go for now, and only because Clay would be with her. It was something to discuss later though. One by one they all started to head out to their own homes. Within an hour the fire was put out and everyone left at Clay’s were off to bed. 

XXX

Jason and Mickey were sitting on the couch Saturday night waiting for when Clay and Emma would come out of their bedrooms. It was still so weird to Jason that Clay had this house all to himself. He knew he was given a key and told he could crash here whenever he wanted, same as Emma and Mickey, but still, it was Clay’s house. He had managed to get a house right on the beach, it was unbelievable. Jason had no idea Clay was even interested in writing, let alone having a successfully published book. It was insane, and he couldn’t have been prouder of him. Jason was already going to be stopping off at a bookstore on his way home tomorrow to pick up a copy of Clay’s book. There was no way in hell that his son was going to have a published book out there and he wasn't going to read it. Or leave it anywhere but on display on a shelf.

“How much longer are they going to be?” Mickey asked.

Jason couldn’t blame him, it seemed like they had been getting ready for two hours now. He had promised Mickey that they could order food and watch the hockey game tonight once they had this place to themselves. Mickey was very much looking forward to it. Jason was looking forward to it as well, but also for when Mickey went to bed and he could sit outside with a beer under the night stars. He might even get a little fire going to keep him warm. They had finally heard heels on the floor making their way towards them.

“Finally.” Mickey said.

Jason knew they were going to a drag show. He knew that all males would have to dress up in drag to be allowed in, but that did not prepare him for the sight that walked into the room. Emma looked amazing, as always. She looked so much like Alana it sent a pang right through Jason’s heart. She was wearing high heeled boots with red skinny jeans and a black halter top with her black leather jacket over top. She looked stunning and the father in Jason was going on high alert. The only reason he wasn’t demanding that she go back and get changed was knowing that Clay would be there with her. Plus, they were going to a gay club to watch a drag show. He seriously doubted she was going to be hit on by any guy tonight. 

What was blowing Jason’s mind was Clay. He also had on black heeled boots, but his were stilettos and went over his knees. He had black leather tights on that were underneath a black sequin dress that just covered his ass and bits. To top it all off, he had make up on, including some glitter on the side of his face. Jason couldn’t help the huge smile on his face as he spoke.

“Well, I always wanted another daughter.”

“I look fabulous and you know it.” Clay said, as he snapped his fingers in a circle around himself and spoke in a stereotypical gay voice.

Jason laughed as he got up and pulled his phone out and started to take some pictures. “Oh this is going to be the team’s Christmas card.”

Clay gave a laugh to that. 

“You have to admit Dad, he looks pretty good.” Emma said proud of the work she had done. 

“She’s a miracle worker.” Clay said with a nod in Emma’s direction.

“Miracle worker? She’s a freaking witch to be able to turn you into this. Come on, give me some photos. I swear I will keep them to myself.” 

There was no way in hell was Jason ever going to let Clay and Emma get out of here without a photo. He needed to get photos of this. Clay and Emma both smiled as Clay put his arm around her. Jason snapped some photos as they changed positions, but Jason’s favorite had to be when they both bent forward a bit and blew him a kiss. Jason could not believe how confident and comfortable Clay was dressed like this. If it had been him, he would never have made it out of the bedroom, especially in those heels. 

“Can we go now?” Clay asked, with a smile.

“Alright, go and have fun. Em, listen to Clay please and no drinking and driving.” Jason said, as he looked at them both.

“We know. I’m going to be the sober driver tonight for everyone.” Clay said.

“Ya and I’m not old enough to drink so you don’t have to worry.” Emma said with an innocent smile.

“And that would be completely believable if it wasn’t for the fact that Clay will be sober tonight. If you didn’t have a fake ID you would be the sober driver. Nice try though.” Jason pointed out. 

“Damn, Dad figured you out right quick.” Clay said, with a teasing smile to Emma.

“It’s like being raised by a lie detector.” Emma said with a warm smile back.

“You two be safe and call me if something happens.” Jason said, completely serious.

“I got her, I promise.” Clay said, with all joking aside.

“I know. Have fun you two.”

“See ya Dad.” Emma said.

“Night Dad.” Clay said, as he tossed his arm around Emma and they headed out. 

Jason turned to look at Mickey and Mickey just shook his head. “I will never dress like that.”

Jason couldn’t help but laugh at that. Mickey was a lot like him, without the interest in the military. He was a jock, a manly man, and Jason knew there was no way in hell he would ever dress in drag. That was what made Clay so special. He was so comfortable with his sexuality, he didn’t care if people thought he was into guys or not. It also went to show just how good of a friend and brother he was, that he would dress in drag just to go and see a drag show that his brother’s boyfriend was in. Jason didn't think he would be able to do it any more than Mickey.

“Pizza time?” Jason asked, already knowing the answer.

“Heck yes!” Mickey cheered as he went and grabbed the TV remote.

Jason pulled his phone out and dialed the pizza place around the corner. He knew he wouldn’t have to worry about either Emma or Clay, they would be safe with each other, plus Yoder would be there as well. Jason could just sit back, relax, eat some pizza and watch the game with his son. 

XXX

Clay and Emma pulled into the parking lot of the club. Emma was super excited to see her first drag show, the girls back at school were going to be so jealous. Emma was also excited to be spending some one on one time with Clay and she would be able to get to know Yoder more. She could tell that Yoder meant a great deal to Clay and she wanted to have the chance to get to know him and his boyfriend. 

“You ready cutie?” Clay asked, Emma with a warm smile.

“Hell ya.” 

They both got out of Clay’s truck and headed towards the short line up. Clay knew that within the hour the line up would be going around the building. They were getting here a little bit earlier so they could spend some time with Yoder before the show started. Ali would already be backstage getting ready, so this way they could keep Yoder company. Emma pulled out her fake ID and Clay just smiled. He was sure he was going to be hearing about Emma’s fake ID when they got back home or in the morning. There was no way Jason was going to let that one go. Just like there would be a conversation about him teaching Emma how to fight. Clay would also have to confess to teaching her how to shoot, but that was a problem for another day. Tonight was about fun and that was exactly what Clay was going to do. 

They headed inside and Clay instantly spotted Yoder at a table right by the front of the stage. They both made their way over to Yoder and both Clay and Emma smiled at seeing him. He was all dressed up himself with make up, a tight black cocktail dress and red stiletto heels. Yoder stood up and gave Emma a hug as he spoke.

“You guys made it. You look beautiful.” 

“Thank-you, you look fabulous.” Emma said, with a big smile. 

Emma had never been in a gay club before and she was not disappointed with this one. It was gorgeous. There was dance lighting on the ceiling, all pointing towards the dance floor just off to the right of the stage. There were velvet booths all along the walls with tables in the middle. The bar was all glass, even the bar top and it had different color changing lights all around it. This place was set to impress and Emma was very much impressed.

“Looking good Firecracker.” Yoder said to Clay.

“You always outdo me.” Clay said with a warm smile.

“I don’t know, you look pretty sexy tonight. I think someone had some help this time around.” Yoder said, as he took Clay’s appearance in.

“Em has a gift.” Clay agreed, as he held the chair out for Emma to sit down between them. 

“A serious one by the look of things. How was your day?” Yoder asked Emma.

“It was good. I got a front row seat to watch Dad and Clay arguing over who makes breakfast.” 

“Seriously?” Yoder asked Clay with a smile.

“Apparently it’s his thing. He kept saying, I make breakfast.” Clay said with a shrug.

“He does make breakfast. Whenever he gets back from an op or tour he always cooks breakfast every morning he is home. Mom used to say it was the only thing he knew how to cook.” Emma said, with a slightly sad smile at the reminder of her mother.

Clay reached over and placed his hand on her knee and ran his thumb over it to provide some comfort to her. He knew the loss of her mother was still fresh even after all these months. Emma gave Clay a warm smile of thanks and Yoder changed topics.

“The barbecue went well last night I think.”

“I told you it would. The guys all liked Ali.” Clay said; he knew Yoder had been worried about how the guys would handle seeing Ali.

“Ya they did. I was surprised. I know he’s not what a typical person would expect.” 

Yoder was surprised himself that the guys had all taken to Ali so well. He knew that Ali was a lot to swallow, especially if you were a manly man like most frogmen were. Ali had been a surprise to Yoder himself. He always dated buff men, he always dated tough bottoms. Guys that could easily pass as being straight and they were always in the closet. Yet with Ali, he was so different. He loved being out, he was so out of the closet he couldn’t even see the closet. He had been out since he was twelve years old when he started to wear women’s clothing because it reflected who he was. It had taken a bit for Yoder to understand that Ali wasn’t transgender, he didn’t feel like he was born in the wrong body. He just loved how powerful he felt wearing a pair of heels. He loved how women’s clothing felt against his skin and the style of it, right down to the underwear. Ali had brought a light to his life though and Yoder was seriously falling in love with him. 

“He’s amazing and you look great together.” Emma said.

“He’s not like anyone you have ever dated and that’s a good thing. Your past boyfriends have all been assholes that would refuse to even look at you in public. He’s out and proud and he makes you smile and laugh. That’s all I care about.” Clay said honestly.

“Thanks brother. He makes me happy. Now we just gotta find you someone.”

“Naw man, I’m not looking for anything right now. I got enough to focus on with work.” 

“And you?” Yoder asked, Emma with a friendly nudge.

“No one right now. I have been busy with my school work. It’s my first year in College so I want to make sure I get a good grasp on it. There’s plenty of good looking guys, but I’m not looking to just hook up with someone that just wants to be fuck buddies. I’m worth more than that.”

“You’re worth a hell of a lot more than that.” Clay instantly said.

“Which is why I am happy to be single until someone wants to wine and dine my ass.” Emma said, as the waitress came over to take their drink orders.

Clay ordered just a pop while Yoder ordered another beer and Emma got a cosmo. She wasn’t going to be drinking much, only just a couple. She knew her dad wasn't too happy with her drinking outside of the house, especially when she wasn't twenty-one. Clay was here though and she knew he would be ok with it, hence why she got to even come here with her fake ID. The three of them talked until the drag show started. Once it did their attention was fully on the stage. The three of them all smiled as Ali was one of the performers on stage. He was a natural talent and you could tell he loved every second up on that stage. Clay looked over at Yoder and he could see nothing but pride and love in his eyes. Yoder and Ali had only been together for five months, but it was clear he was already well on his way to love. Clay was so happy for him. 

Ali was up on stage for roughly ninety minutes, the length of the drag show, before he made his way over to the table. Yoder was instantly up on his feet and pulling Ali in for a kiss, one Ali happily kissed back. Once Yoder pulled back, Ali made his way over to Emma and pulled her in for a hug as he spoke.

“You both look fabulous.” 

“So do you! I can’t believe how amazing that was.” Emma said, over the music.

Ali went over and gave Clay a hug as he spoke.

“Thank-you. It is always so much fun to be up on that stage.”

“You were great.” Clay said, warmly.

Ali accepted the drink that Yoder had ordered him, but he drank it in one go without sitting down. With the glass empty he grabbed Yoder’s hand as he spoke.

“Honey, I did not bring you here just for you to sit down.”

Yoder had a big smile on his face as Ali pulled him to his feet and they headed off for the dance floor. Clay looked at Emma and he could see that she wanted to dance just as badly.

“Just so you know, I’m not good.” Clay said with a big smile himself, as he stood up.

“What white guy is?” Emma teased, as she took Clay’s offered hand.

“Ouch.” Clay said, as he laughed, guiding them over to the dance floor to join Yoder and Ali.

Yoder was dancing behind Ali, and Emma went right over and started to dance in front of Ali. Clay joined them, standing behind Emma and together the four of them tore up the dance floor. They were having so much fun, they had no idea that tonight would be the last time the four of them would ever be able to have fun together. It would also be the last moment that Emma would be able to cherish of her older brother just being carefree and having fun. 

XXX

Jason and Clay were heading into work after saying goodbye to Emma and Mickey that Monday morning. Jason had decided to use this time to talk to Clay about a couple of things regarding Emma.

“Spill it, when did you teach her how to fight and when did she get the fake ID?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Clay said, innocently.

“Don’t, don’t even. I know you two talk about a lot of things, things I don’t want to know about. And I will forever be grateful for the fact that you enjoy talking about her friends and guys that she likes. But there are things that I also need to know, like illegal IDs and her being able to fight. Talk, now.”

“Alright, fine.” Clay started with a smile. “About six months before she moved to New York I started to teach her some self-defense moves just in case something ever happened. I also taught her how to disarm a guy with a knife and a gun. I also taught her how to shoot should she need to know. The fake ID she got it at sixteen.”

“No she didn’t. I would have known, Alana would have known.” Jason instantly said.

“And yet, you both didn't. The first fake ID was pretty crappy, a bunch of high school kids made em in photography class. A little side business, but it was enough to fool the security at a college frat party. Second fake ID is much better she got it from a reputable ID creator before she headed off to New York. It states she is twenty-one. It gets her into bars and clubs. And yes I have known this whole time and have always gone with her to make sure she is ok.”

“So you both have been keeping this from me this whole time. I kinda need to know these things Sunshine.” Jason said, keeping his tone even so Clay wouldn’t think he was in trouble.

“I know, but it wasn’t my place to rat on her. And I had just joined the team about a month ago. I always made sure she was safe and she always went when I could go with her. When she was getting ready to move to New York, she picked up a proper fake ID. I obviously couldn’t go with her so I made sure she could defend herself. I also gave her a special nail polish that she could wear, it changes color when you dip it into your drink and there’s a roofie in it. She doesn’t tend to go out much though so don’t worry. She said she wants to focus on her studies and not parties or guys.”

Jason let out a long breath as he digested the information. He knew Clay was looking out for Emma. Clay knew better than Jason did what it was like to be young in this century. Still, he hated the thought that his little girl was out there on her own in a big city like New York. 

“I am grateful that you taught her what you have. And I do feel better knowing that she is able to defend herself and is safe with her drinks. I don't like her going out to parties and drinking. I’m never going to like it.”

“I get it, but she really doesn’t go out much and she doesn’t tend to drink much. She thinks it’s a waste of money to get so wasted you’re sick the next day. And she doesn’t do any drugs. You and Alana raised her right. She’s smart and she knows what she wants in life. She’s not going to risk it for anything. And there’s not even a guy that she is interested in, so you don’t have to worry about any dudes.”

“Good. But I want to know if something happens or something comes up. You don’t have to tell me everything, but I’d like to know if she is out at a club or a party. If something were to happen I need to be able to know where she is.”

“I get that. It’s why I have a tracker in her phone.” Clay said with a smirk as he looked over at Jason.

“You what? You put a tracker in her phone? Does she know?” Jason said, shocked as he glanced over at Clay.

“She does not know and of course I put a tracker in her phone. I taught her how to be safe and how to defend herself, but she’s not invincible. If I don't hear from her when I’m supposed to, I need to know I can find her. I haven’t ever had to use it, she always texts or calls me when she gets back from going out. But it is there just in case.”

“You’re sneakier than I thought.” Jason said, proudly.

“Hey, that’s my little sister. I’m not about to just let her go off into the world without knowing where she is. We’ve seen too much shit in this world to have rose colored glasses. The tracker keeps my sanity and works as an insurance policy. You can’t tell me you don’t feel better knowing that it’s there.” Clay challenged.

“Of course I do. Thankfully I have a genius for a son.” Jason said with a proud smile.

Jason felt better knowing the full story about the fake ID and the fighting. He was also proud of Clay for taking it on himself to teach Emma some self-defense moves. It was something he wanted to do with her, but Emma didn’t seem interested. Jason didn’t care who taught her how to fight as long as she knew how. Plus with the tracker, it would make it easier for him to sleep at night. If something were to happen they would be able to find her through her phone. It was time that could save her life. Once again Clay was proving why he was the best big brother his kids could ever ask for. 

XXX

Clay was sitting at the back of the plane reading while the guys were all getting sorted after the mission. It had gone well, better than Clay had expected it would. Working as Bravo Two felt so natural to him and it seemed like him and Jason already had a strong shorthand. Jason had asked Clay’s thoughts before giving his own. He had explained everything that Clay had questions about, not that that was any different to how he normally was with him. Still, this time around it felt different, because he was being trained to take over. Vic had kept pretty quiet, they didn’t really work well together, something that was made pretty clear early on. If Vic was supposed to be his number two, they had a long way to go. It didn’t bother Clay too much, because he didn’t ever see himself using Vic as his number two. That spot was going to be Yoder’s, now and always. 

Jason came over to Clay and he couldn’t help but smile as he saw him reading. Jason sat down and gave Clay’s shoulder a nudge with his own. Clay smiled, as he put his book down. 

“You know I just started.” Clay said with a small shake of his head.

“I know, and I’m sorry I know you like the time to reset. I just wanted to talk to you about something personal for a moment.”

Clay put his book down to the right of him as he spoke. “What’s going on?”

Jason spoke as he handed Clay the envelope that he had in his hand. “I picked these up a couple of months ago and I’ve been waiting for the right time to give them to you. I’ve already filled them out and I just want to let you know that there is no pressure at all. If you don’t want to sign them, you don’t have to. Nothing changes between us.”

“What are they?” Clay asked, as he opened the envelope to pull out the papers.

The first thing he saw was the word adoption written on the top of the page in bold black letters. 

“I would like to make it official and adopt you as my son. Only though if you’d like that.”

“You want to adopt me?” Clay said, softly as he took in the paperwork.

This was crazy. Clay never expected for Jason to do something like this. Clay had never even thought about getting adopted by Jason. Clay felt like Jason was his father, he knew Jason felt the same, he never thought he would want to make that official. 

“I would love to make it official. But like I said there is no pressure on my end. If you don’t want to do that, then that’s ok. Nothing is going to change between us.”

The very last thing Jason wanted was for Clay to feel pressured into signing them. Jason wanted to make it official, because he loved Clay and Clay was his son. He would have loved to adopt Clay and let the whole world know.

“But what about work? Would this affect you? Would people think you are compromised?” The very last thing Clay wanted was for this to jeopardize Jason’s career. 

“This wouldn’t affect work at all. No one is going to question my loyalty to the teams or think in any way that I am compromised. You don’t have to worry about favoritism or any repercussions. This is just taking our relationship and making it official. But like I said, there’s no pressure. If you don’t want to sign them, you don’t have to. This is the only time I’m going to bring it up. The ball is completely in your court, there’s no pressure. Nothing will change between us. I promise son. This is just if you want to. I’m good either way.”

Clay gave a nod. “Can I think about it?”

“You got all the time in the world. They don’t expire.” Jason said with a warm smile before he gave a wink and stood up.

Clay watched as Jason headed off to get himself set up in a hammock. He looked down at the papers in his hands and he saw Jason’s signature on it. He was shocked that Jason wanted to make it official. He also wasn’t sure what to feel about it. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to make it official, he did, it was just that he was scared. He didn’t want Jason to have problems at work, but he also didn’t want Jason to regret it later on. He was scared that once it became official, Jason would regret it. Ash didn’t want him, his mother didn’t want him, so why would someone like Jason want him? Clay knew it was his own insecurities that were keeping him from signing the papers. It was something he would need to work out before he could ever sign these papers. Clay put them back into the envelope and placed them in his bag. One day he would sign them. One day he would make it official and he would change his name to Clay Hayes. One day. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am just curious, would you like me to do a side story that is all about Yoder and his relationship with Ali. It would go into Yoder’s background, him dealing with the crap he gets for being gay in the military. It would also cover how him and Ali met and Ali’s own background. Let me know if you’d like me to write a little side story with them.
> 
> As for Ali’s look, think of something similar to James Charles.


	7. Chapter 7

Clay was making his way towards a house party that Yoder had invited him to. Clay wasn’t all that sure he wanted to be here, but they were a friend of Yoder’s from Green Team and he hadn’t been able to see much of Yoder in the past few months. They were both on operations and with Team Seven back in commission they were busy to make up for lost time. Tomorrow Clay was supposed to be starting his six month instructor job with Green Team. Clay had no idea how this was going to go. He was hoping he was a good teacher. He was going to use what Adam had taught him and try to instill the same values into the new cadets. If nothing else, he would be able to get this requirement completed so he could take over Bravo when the time comes. 

Clay pulled up to the house and noticed a good amount of cars here. He was really hoping it would just be a normal house party and nothing crazy. He wasn’t a fan of house parties to begin with, had never gotten into it. He much preferred a quiet bar like the Bulkhead for the times he did go out for a drink. Clay didn’t see Yoder’s car so he figured he either got a ride with a friend or he wasn’t here yet. Clay got out and made his way towards the house. He tried the door and was not surprised to find it unlocked. Clay opened the door and the second he walked in he was hit with loud dance music. Clay gave a groan as he headed towards the living room where he was hoping to find Yoder. The house was packed with different men and women, all of which were drinking and dancing. Clay scanned the room, but he didn’t see Yoder anywhere unfortunately. Clay then began to make the pain staking trip through the crowd and off to the kitchen where he could continue on in his search. 

Clay made his way through the crowd, doing his best not to bump into anyone. He gave a few head nods to guys that had recognized him and he avoided a few grabbing hands from different girls. He was single, but that didn’t mean he was interested in hooking up with anyone. He wanted to focus on his career and getting through Green Team. Clay also really didn’t want to go from one girl to the next. He was in love with Stella and then Rebecca and both of them didn’t work out because of his career and it not lining up with theirs. Clay wanted some time to focus on his career and hopefully eventually he would find a woman who could love him and his career and not in spite of it. 

Clay walked into the kitchen and saw that it was empty surprisingly. Clay leaned against the kitchen counter and pulled his phone out just as someone called his name. 

“Spenser man, what are you doing here?” 

Clay looked over and saw Vic walking into the kitchen. For some reason Clay didn’t expect for him to be here, but at the same time it made sense. Vic had been in Green Team with most of the guys here, including the one that rented this place. For the past few months Clay had been trying to get along with Vic. He had been trying to see Vic as one of the guys, but no matter what Clay tried he just didn’t trust him nor like him. Clay had silently been looking into Vic and his past. The social media page had finally been taken down two months ago, but it was never discovered as to who had started it. Clay also suspected that there was another social media page where all the trolls headed over to. There was just something about Vic that Clay could not trust. It wouldn’t surprise Clay if Vic had something to do with the social media page and the things that had been happening to him.

The guys didn’t know, they thought everything was fine since getting back, but there had been things that came up. The tires on his truck had been slashed while it was parked at his house.Things in his cage had been moved around. There had been a brick thrown through his window. He had also been getting phone calls from a blocked number. Sometimes they were hang ups, and other times it was an electronic voice telling him what they were going to do to him. Clay had been keeping track of everything in a notebook. He also recorded every phone conversation from the blocked number as well. Clay kept it all in a safe he had in his bedroom closet. Clay hadn’t told the guys about it. He didn’t want to worry them, because so far there was nothing any of them could do. He did install surveillance cameras all over the outside of his home and he had an alarm system installed as well. Clay suspected that Vic had something to do with all of it, but he couldn’t prove it yet. Until he could, he had been keeping a very close eye on Vic to make sure his brothers were safe.

Ever since they had arrived back from tour and Clay had been playing nice with Vic, the team dynamic had gotten a lot better. They were back to how they used to be and Clay didn’t want to disrupt that. Jason and Ray’s relationship had also improved and they were back on good terms. Clay didn't want to cause any chaos or disrupt the team with his unfounded suspicions. Tension in a team was what could get someone hurt or killed and Clay was not going to take that risk with any of his brothers. He would wait until he had something solid to go off of and then he would inform Blackburn.

“Yoder invited me. Have you seen him around?” 

“Nope and I’ve been here for about an hour now.” Vic said, as he moved over to the counter to get a drink.

Clay’s phone vibrated and Clay looked down to see a text from Yoder. He opened it to see that he wouldn’t be coming, he got spun up. Clay swore internally as he sent one back saying no problem and to be safe. 

“We getting spun up?” Vic asked, as he made drinks.

“No, Yoder did. Looks like I came out here for nothing.” Clay said, as he put his phone away.

“Not nothing. You’re here, might as well have a few drinks and relax.” Vic said, as he handed Clay a drink.

“I’m not really looking to party. I was just coming by to hang out with Yoder.” Clay said, not taking the offered drink.

“I get that, but you’re already here. Might as well make it worth the drive. Have a drink and if you aren’t having fun, you can head back home and curl up with whatever book you are reading.” Vic said, with a warm smile as he held the drink out to Clay.

Clay could tell Vic wasn't going to just let this go and he really didn’t want to upset him right now. Plus, he had never been around Vic while he was partying. Clay was hoping maybe they could get some information out of Vic while he was drunk. Clay took the drink as he spoke.

“Fine, but just one.”

Vic gave Clay a smile as he patted his back. “There ya go. And who knows maybe you will find a sexy girl to hook up with. Come on, let’s get you out there.” 

Vic wrapped an arm around Clay and brought him out into the living room. This was the last place Clay wanted to be. He would have preferred to be in the kitchen where it was empty and quieter. Vic led Clay around the room, stopping to say hi to a few people as they went. Clay did his best to be friendly as he sipped on his drink. It seemed like Vic knew everyone and wanted to show off his teammate on Bravo. Clay did his best not to roll his eyes as Vic was so very clearly trying to show off that he had made it to the top team when the others hadn’t been picked, putting them on a support team while they were stuck on a waiting list. Yoder was on a waiting list, but he was good enough to be picked up by Team Seven. Vic was clearly showing off and the guys all seemed to tolerate it because Vic had the prestige of being a Tier One Operator. Clay did notice that all of the guys seemed very friendly and easy going. They all had asked him how Yoder was doing and if he was liking Team Seven. None of them seemed bothered by Yoder being gay, which was a huge relief to Clay. It was nice to know that there were guys within the Navy that didn’t care about sexuality. 

It was a good thirty minutes later when Clay had finished his drink and a shot that Vic had given to him. Clay was in the kitchen when he found himself starting to feel really weird. His body was a little shaky, and his head was getting foggy. It felt like he was going through a tunnel without actually moving. The world spun on him and Clay managed to keep himself up right by holding onto the counter in the kitchen.

“Hey man, you ok?” 

Clay looked over and could just make out Vic’s face. His eyesight was getting blurry and it was coming and going in and out of focus. Something was wrong, that was all Clay could think about. Something was wrong.

“Something’s wrong.” Clay slurred.

“Damn man, you’re already drunk. I didn’t think you were a lightweight. Come on, I’ll drive you home.” Vic said with a smile.

“I’ll give him a ride. You’ve had too much to drink to drive.” Another male voice said.

Clay tried to see who it was, but he just couldn’t get his eyes to focus enough to make him out perfectly.

“Let’s get you to your truck.” Vic said, as he started to walk Clay out the backdoor where no one was.

“I need to call Dad.” Clay slurred, as he stumbled around.

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.” Vic said, as he guided Clay down the back steps and around the house.

Vic looked back at the other guy following them and the guy just gave Vic a smirk. Their plan was working perfectly, especially with Yoder not being here. When Vic saw Clay here all alone, he knew it was a sign. He had been waiting for the perfect opportunity to enact his place and tonight gave him it. He would need to message Ash on the way to let him know so he could start getting everything on his end. After tonight they would only have less than twenty-four hours to complete their plan. If they wanted this done right they would have to hurry before they missed their chance. And after tonight, there would be no guarantee they would ever get another chance at this. 

Once over at the truck, Vic grabbed Clay’s keys from his pocket and unlocked the truck. He laid Clay down on the back seat, Clay gave a groan but the drugs were hitting him fully now. He was basically passed out. Vic tossed the keys over to Smith, Charlie’s former rookie, who gave Vic a huge smile. Smith had been waiting for months now to get some revenge on Clay for him being stripped of his trident. Tonight was finally going to give him what he had been waiting for. Vic ran over to his car and grabbed the small black duffle bag that was in it. He then ran back over to Clay’s truck and got into the passenger side as Smith got behind the wheel. Within seconds they were out of there and heading to Clay’s. Vic pulled out his burner phone and started to text Ash.

**Got Clay drugged up at a party, just heading to his place now. What’s the security code?**

**I can disable it from here. I’ll do that now. Make sure you cover your faces for the tape and any distinguishing marks. You’ll have to computerize your voices before you upload it. I’ll call the guys so they can grab him tomorrow. Don’t forget the tracker on his truck. They need it to follow him, and they’ll remove it once they have him.**

Vic couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Ash treated him like he was an idiot. This plan was his idea, the only thing Ash had brought to the table were the connections. Vic had been the one to think it all up. It had been Vic’s idea for the social media page. Vic’s idea for the so-called prank on tour. And it had been Vic who had slipped the phosphate to the mess worker to give to Clay. Once back Stateside, Vic had gotten others from the social media page to go after Clay’s truck and to call him from different blocked numbers to harass him. Vic was the mastermind behind all of it and now that they were finally going to live out his ultimate plan Ash wanted to act like he was the one behind it all. Vic really hated not getting credit for any of it, but he also knew if someone had to be the fall guy, Ash was perfect. Vic had made sure none of it could be traced back to him, it would all be traced back to Ash. No one would ever suspect him of trying to go after Clay, after a brother. What drove Vic crazy though, was the fact that everyone said Clay was such a big genius, and yet he couldn’t even see what was going on in front of him. If he was so smart, why didn’t he know what Vic had been doing? That was probably the best part of it to Vic. The fact that he could completely blindside Clay, Mr. Golden Boy, and he would never see it coming. Vic wished he could be there when Clay realised what his life was going to be like. It would have been perfect. 

**I know, don’t worry I got this. You just make sure everything is ready on your end.**

**It will be.**

Vic put the phone away and turned to look at Clay. He was completely out in the backseat. 

“You ready for this?” Vic asked Smith.

“Fucking right I am. You got everything we need?”

“All right here. Remember, there’s no going back after this.”

“I’ve already been dishonorably discharged because of that son of a bitch. Lindell’s little bitch, he wanted to make a statement about anyone verbally attacking Clay. Fucking discharged me with a dishonourable, I lost everything. I can’t wait to get some payback for it. I already booked my ticket for a plane to Tunisia. I’ll be living on the beach and being able to use my skills for an even better pay day. You just make sure I can still see the social media page. I want to watch as his life gets destroyed.” Smith said, with an evil smile.

“I’ll make sure of it. Don’t worry he’s going to get exactly what he deserves.” Vic promised.

Smith still couldn’t believe he was going to be able to do this tonight. He had wanted to punish Clay for getting him discharged for months now, but he hadn’t had the chance. When Vic pulled him aside in the kitchen when Clay’s truck pulled in, he couldn’t believe his luck. Tonight Clay was going to get exactly what he deserved and then Smith would get to watch as Clay’s life went up in smoke. The pain from tonight would always haunt Clay and Smith would be sitting on a beach in a country that held no extradition, watching it all happen. 

When they arrived at Clay’s house it only made Smith more pissed off. To think that Clay would be able to afford a place like this only fueled Smith’s anger. To him Clay had always been given everything, he never had to work for it. Everything was handed to him, even being allowed to be in Green Team at twenty-four, it was bullshit. No one else had been allowed to be in Green Team with that little experience, but Princess Spenser got to be. It only proved that Clay had sucked someone’s cock to make it happen. It wouldn’t surprise Smith if Clay bent over and let Jason fuck him to cement his position on Bravo. Clay was a fucking bitch and tonight he was going to be Smith’s personal bitch. They both got out and Vic grabbed the duffle bag while Smith went and grabbed Clay, throwing him over his shoulder and they both headed inside. Vic looked at the security camera and smirked as he saw the red light was off, signalling it was off. He used Clay;s keys and unlocked the door, pleased again when the alarm didn’t go off. They headed inside and headed straight for Clay’s bedroom. 

Smith tossed Clay down onto his bed, not caring if he fell off of it or not. Vic got the duffle bag open and tossed Smith a full face mask as he took one out for himself. Along with a video camera. 

**(Date Rape Scene, But It Is Not Descriptive. It Is Only The Start, It Cuts Away Before It Gets Into Anything.)**

Smith made quick work removing Clay of his clothing while Vic got the video camera all set up. They both put on their masks and then Vic turned the camera on and started to film. As Smith started to touch Clay, Vic couldn’t help but smile. Clay was completely helpless and defenseless to them. They could do whatever they wanted to him and Smith was going to be taking full advantage of it.

“I think it’s time we showed the world just how much of a bitch you are.” Smith said, to an unconscious Clay.

Smith went and slapped Clay hard across the face, only succeeding in snapping Clay’s face to the right. Smith continued to punch Clay across the face and his torso. He had wanted to beat the living shit out of him ever since he was in Green Team and all the instructors talked about was Clay Spenser. He was their golden boy and it made Smith sick. Clay didn’t even have the experience to be in Green Team, and yet he got to go when Smith was denied for three years in a row because he didn’t have the field experience. Yet Clay could do it without a single issue. When Smith ran out of steam, he then turned his attention to the real fun of the night. He opened his paints and pulled himself out. He wasn’t hard yet but he knew he would get there. He wasn’t gay, didn’t have any interest in guys, but this wasn't about sex and attraction. This was all about making Clay pay. It was about power and violence and it was going to ruin Clay. 

Smith went and held Clay’s mouth open as he moved his member over to his mouth and started to piss in his mouth. He made sure to keep Clay’s head back so it would go down his throat and not run out of his mouth. Both Smith and Vic laughed as Clay naturally choked on the fluid going down his throat. His instincts and muscles automatically swallowed the urine. Smith looked over at Vic and right at the camera as he spoke.

“Now the fun begins.”

Vic knew that tonight was going to be amazing. After this night, Clay would be well on his way to being ruined. This was the first step in his plan, and soon Clay would be long gone and Bravo would be able become stronger with Vic as their new leader. 

XXX

It was just after four in the morning when Clay started to stir awake. There was a fog surrounding everything in his head. He couldn’t seem to push through it. It was like he was deep under water and he couldn’t seem to break that surface. Before Clay could even start to clear the fog, his stomach flipped and Clay’s eyes shot open and he stumbled his way into his bathroom and just made it to the toilet as he threw up. Clay could feel his entire body shaking, he couldn’t seem to get it to stop. Once he had nothing left in his stomach, Clay leaned against the glass shower stall behind him to try and settle his stomach, but also to figure out what the hell happened. He knew he was home, but he couldn’t remember getting here. The last solid thing Clay could remember was being at the house party to meet Yoder. He got spun up and then Vic gave him a drink and walked around the room with him. That was it though. He couldn’t remember anything but two drinks. 

Clay focused on his body to try and see if it could tell him anything. He kept his eyes closed, because he felt the room spin slightly. He knew he was nauseous and slightly dizzy. Clay could feel some pain in various spots. His ribs were sore, his face was sore and he could feel dry blood on the side of his face. His hands weren’t sore though, so if he was in a fight, he didn’t hit back. Clay moved slightly to try and take some weight off of his lungs, but the movement caused sharp shooting pain to go all the way up his back. Clay couldn’t help the slight scream that escaped his lips. The movement caused not only a sharp pain to radiate up his back, but his ass was throbbing. Clay opened his eyes and for the first time, looked down. He was naked, and there was also dry blood on his inner thighs. Tears flooded Clay’s eyes as the reality of his situation hit him. His stomach flipped and he was once again throwing up. 

Clay couldn’t believe this was happening, that this was happening to him. He had been raped, drugged and raped and he couldn’t remember anything. Once Clay got his stomach to settle once again, he pushed himself up off of the floor and was instantly in his shower. He turned the water on as hot as it could go and stood under it as the tears poured down his face. Clay knew he should be going to the hospital, he should be calling the police and filing a report, but he couldn’t do that. He couldn’t go through a rape exam, he couldn’t be touched like that. He couldn’t have this out in the world, and being interviewed and going through court. He just wanted to forget. He wanted to pretend like this didn’t happen. He just needed to forget. 

Clay stood under the hot water, scrubbing his skin until the water ran cold. Clay didn’t care that his skin was red and scrubbed raw, he needed the hands off from him. He made sure he got all of the blood off of him as well as the bodily fluid that he could feel dripping out of him. Clay threw up once again in the shower at discovering he had another man’s semen inside of him. When the water ran cold, Clay got out and wrapped a towel around his hips. He was in a great deal of pain, and every movement and step caused shooting pain to go all up and down his back and ass. Clay opened his medicine cabinet and grabbed one of the morphine injectors that he had from work that he forgot was in his fatigues when he came home. Clay grabbed it and injected it right into his high, knowing that it would at least take the pain away. Clay dropped it into the sink and then moved into his bedroom as he held onto the wall to steady himself. 

Clay had to fight the nausea as he looked at his bedroom. His comforter and pillows were on the floor, but his sheets had blood all over them. There were also various objects that were covered in blood and Clay knew they had been used on him. He needed to clean up. If he cleaned up then he wouldn’t remember, he just had to make it all go away. Clay stumbled along the wall until he reached his dresser. He put on some clean boxers, black sweatpants, a long sleeved shirt and zip up sweater. Once dressed Clay then turned around and closed his eyes for a moment as the room spun once again. Clay couldn’t help but worry about whatever drug was given to him. There was no telling how he would react to it. When the room stopped spinning Clay opened his eyes and decided to move.

He just needed to get the bed changed and toss the items into the trash. Everything would be fine once his room was cleaned. With shaky legs and tears still going down his face, Clay grabbed the items and wrapped them in the ruined sheets. He also grabbed the mattress cover that he had over the mattress, as the blood had soaked through to it, but thankfully not the mattress. With everything collected Clay made the painstaking journey down his hallway and down the stairs to go outside to his garbage can. He tossed the wrapped up items into the can and then leaned against the wall to try and catch his breath. He knew the morphine would kick in soon and take the majority of the pain away, he just had to wait for that to happen. Clay saw his truck was here, so whoever did this had driven him home. If he drove him home, then he knew where he lived. Clay’s mind instantly realised that his security system was on when he left, but his alarm wasn’t going off, so either he turned his security alarm off and doesn’t remember, or the person got his code somehow. 

Clay turned and headed back inside and slowly made his way up the stairs to get to his laptop in his bedroom. He had cameras all over the outside of his home, he would have their person on tape. Clay made it back into his bedroom and went over to his bedside table and pulled out his laptop. He brought it over to his desk and gently sat down on the edge of his chair. Clay closed his eyes and took a few shaky breaths as the pain increased by the pressure on his ass. Once it settled down slightly he opened his eyes and got his laptop up and running. He pulled up his security camera footage and to his shock, there was nothing last night for hours. It wasn’t deleted, his system was turned off, it still was. Clay tried to figure out how this happened.

No one had his code, but Jason. He wouldn’t have turned it off, because he would have to have gone into his laptop to do it. So that was obviously out. There was no way he was drugged up and able to still get his laptop turned on, turn his security off and then power down his laptop and put it away. That made no sense, so someone had to turn it off somehow, but he had no idea how. None of this was making any sense to Clay and the more he thought about it, the harder it was to breathe. The emotional pain that was flooding his system was consuming him. He knew he should be thinking clearly, but all he could think about was not remembering what happened to him. Clay didn’t know why, but that seemed to make it worse. He remembered Vic giving him two drinks, but that was it. Then there were red shoes and a bird, but then it all went blank. 

Clay didn’t have any proof, but he believed Vic drugged him. Vic was the only one that had given him drinks. Clay quickly grabbed some paper and a pen. He had to make sure that someone knew the truth just in case. He didn’t know what would happen, but if Vic tried anything else he wanted to make sure that someone would be able to keep investigating and get justice for him. Clay wrote to the one person he knew he could trust with this truth, Yoder. As he wrote, Clay felt his hand shaking and the tears drop down to the paper. Clay made sure he wrote everything that Yoder would need to know and he left space so he could add to it if something else happened. With that done he put it in an envelope with Yoder’s name and placed it into his top dresser drawer. 

Clay felt the exhaustion within his body and he knew he needed to try and sleep. He grabbed his pillows and comforter off from the ground and just tossed them onto his bed. He would make the bed later. He then grabbed his phone and made his way down the stairs so he could lay on the couch. He couldn’t sleep in his bed, and he had no idea when he would be able to again. Clay curled up on the couch laying down on his left side, as his right hurt more. Clay wished that he could have called Brock so Cerberus was here with him. Cerb always had a way of making him feel better. He wished Jason was here, he would know what to do and what to say to make it ok again. Clay reached over and grabbed his phone. He needed to call Jason, he needed his dad. He opened it to see there were over a hundred text messages and emails. Clay ignored them all and scrolled down until he found a text from Jason roughly thirty minutes ago, they were spun up. Jason had wished him a good first day at Green Team and that he would call once he was back. 

More tears poured down Clay’s face at knowing that he was going to be alone to get through the beginning of this. He wished he could just call Jason and tell him to not go, but he knew he couldn’t. Chances were they were already in the war room getting briefed. Even if he called right now Jason wouldn’t be by his phone. Clay’s phone vibrated and Clay looked at it, hoping that maybe Jason had psychically knew he needed him. Clay saw it was another text message from an unknown number. Clay clicked on his text messages and saw all of the text messages that different phone numbers had sent to him. None of them were saved into his phone, and they were all different, over a hundred of them. Clay clicked on one and instantly his stomach dropped. He clicked on others and they were all the same thing, they were talking about a video that was posted on the new social media page. 

Clay went to his email and scrolled down to the bottom where it showed he was tagged within a new post that was only an hour old. He opened the link and instantly he started to bawl at seeing him laying on his bed naked, completely passed out. The rape had been video taped, and it was four hours long. The video had only been up for an hour and there were already over a thousand comments. All of them were vial and saying how they were enjoying watching the video. They were commenting as it played, and after only an hour there was already over a thousand comments, there was still three hours to go before they would have seen the whole video. Clay threw his phone as far as he could, as he let out a wail of pain. 

Clay turned his head into the couch pillow and cried his heart out. He couldn’t believe this was happening to him. It wasn’t bad enough that they had raped him, but they had recorded it and posted it on the internet for the whole world to see. He would never be able to forget about what happened. He would have to have this video out in the world for the rest of his life. There was no telling who could have downloaded and saved the video for their own pleasure. Clay couldn’t handle this, he couldn’t do this, he couldn’t live with this. He would never be able to escape the pain from the rape. He would never be able to escape the comments. They would keep coming, Clay knew they would. Clay pushed himself up off the couch and tossed some shoes on real quick before heading out. He needed to get away, he just needed to get as far away from his house as he could right now. 

Clay drove to the one place where he could go where the noise would disappear. The one place that always brought him peace when he desperately needed it. Clay knew it was dangerous for him to be driving in his state, but he didn’t care. He didn’t care about anything right now, he just needed this pain to stop. Clay continued to cry as he drove a good thirty minutes away from the city and into a forested area. He drove down the dirt road until he came to an old bridge. He got out of his truck and made the short walk over to the old walkway bridge. Clay went and sat down on the wooden railing of the bridge and looked down into the calm river. Clay had discovered this place when he first got to town. Clay had gone for a drive one day and just discovered this little piece of heaven. 

Whenever he needed to get away from the city noise he always came here. It was one of the few places that Clay could get his mind to turn off so he could just relax. Clay’s body was trembling and he seriously doubted he would ever be able to get it to stop. He just wanted to forget. He wanted to go to sleep and wake up only to discover that this was some horrific nightmare and it never happened. He knew that wasn’t going to happen, he was going to have to live in this nightmare for who knows how long. He wished Jason was here, he would know what to do or to say to make the pain go away. Even if he couldn’t, he would hug him until he felt ready to face the world again. Clay knew he couldn’t go back to his house, not alone. He would go to Jason’s and wait until he got back. Then he could talk to him and Jason would make it ok. He just needed to wait until Jason got back, he could get through this until then. They would probably only be gone for a couple of days, Clay could do that. He got through SERE training all alone, he could get through this. 

Clay wasn’t sure how long he had sat there looking at the water flowing underneath him. He was so lost in thought he didn’t even hear the car approach nor the sounds of footsteps that came towards him. Before Clay even knew what was happening, there was a cloth pressed into his mouth and nose and a set of arms wrapped around him, pulling him back off of the railing and onto the bridge. Clay’s instincts took over as he started to struggle against the hold, but the chemical on the cloth was too strong for his body to fight against and all too soon Clay’s world went dark. 

XXX

The guys were all on the plane heading back into Virginia Beach. Their operation was a quick one, only lasting a solid day on the ground. It had taken them longer to fly out for it then it did to complete the operation. They were all feeling pretty good about themselves. It was really weird for them to not have Clay with them, that part had been hard. They had gotten so used to Clay’s input on operations that now that they wouldn’t get it for six months, it was hard. The team didn’t feel complete without him. They knew he would be back, but the next six months were going to feel incomplete until he would be back with them. Vic had been loving the freedom from Clay. The guys had no idea just what was going to be in store for them when they touched down. Vic knew that he should feel bad, not even about Clay, but about the pain that the guys would be going through. The thing was, he didn’t. He couldn’t wait until they landed and he got to help them try and find Clay. They would never find him, for that Vic was sure of. Him and Ash had everything planned out perfectly. They would never find Clay and they would never discover who was behind all of this. It was perfect and soon enough they would all forget about Clay and be stronger than ever.

They were about half way back to the base when Mandy, Davis and Blackburn moved over to the group of them as they were playing poker. 

“We have a serious problem.” Blackburn started.

Mandy went and connected her laptop to the main screen they had on the plane for when they were planning their operations in the air. She uploaded an email that was sent to her as she spoke.

“I just received this email from an analysis that has been working on the social media page dedicated to cyber bullying Clay. This was uploaded three days ago, right before we took off. I have to warn you, this video is bad.” 

“Play it.” Jason said, on their behalf as he stood up.

All of the guys stood up and moved so they could see the screen. Mandy hit play and she saw Davis turning around so she wouldn’t have to see it again. The guys all watched as the video started. Clay was on his bed and they could tell he was naked. They could also tell he wasn’t alone and he was very much unconscious, most likely drugged as he didn’t even move. The voices that spoke were computerized and there was no way of telling who they were. There were also not in view of any reflection from a mirror or window. They were smart and had their whole body covered. The guys had no idea what was about to happen, all they could do was watch as the one man hit Clay repeatedly and said horrific things to him. They watched as the man removed his dick and pissed in Clay’s mouth. Just as he finished urinating he lowered his dick closer to Clay’s mouth, but then the video was closed by Mandy.

“Why did you stop it?” Vic asked, confused. He really wanted the guys to see it, to watch as they saw their precious golden boy take it up the ass over and over again. 

“You don’t need to see what happens next.” Mandy explained.

“What happens?” Sonny asked, afraid of the answer, even though it was obvious.

“He was raped repeatedly for four hours. Sometimes the man did it, sometimes it was an object used on him. Clay didn’t wake up for any of it or make a sound.” Mandy answered.

“You said it was uploaded three days ago, the morning we took off, why haven’t we heard about this? Why hasn’t the hospital called yet?” Jason said, pissed off that his son had just been raped and yet no one notified them.

“I just got this email, but I checked hospital records. Clay never went into one.” Mandy explained.

“I’ve been calling, but his phone goes straight to voicemail. Judging by the comments on the video, he’s probably been getting spammed with emails and texts over it. He probably turned his phone off so he wouldn’t keep reading the hate messages.” Davis added.

“He needs a hospital. They obviously drugged him, there’s no telling what kind of reaction he will have from the drugs. If he was allergic to any of them, he could be in serious danger of a coma or death. Not to mention any internal damage he suffered from. He could be bleeding internally right now.” Trent said, very worried about Clay’s health right now. There was no telling what damage could have been done by the rape. He doubted the man cared enough to be gentle and safe with him.

“Who the hell are these guys?” Sonny snapped as he threw his beer bottle across the plane.

“We’re working on it. I am going to find them and give you answers.” Mandy promised.

If there was one thing you could count on, it was Mandy’s skills at getting every piece of intel you needed. Sometimes it took her a bit, but she always got her guy. Whoever these two guys were, they couldn’t hide from her. She would get the names and then Bravo would get their heads.

“Keep calling Clay, he might answer. I would suggest we call Derek or Yoder and send them over to his house to check in on him. He’s going to need a medic.” Blackburn said.

“I’ll call em.” Full Metal said.

He knew the guys were going to be focused on Clay, he would be focused on getting one of their own to Clay. Whoever these people were, they just started a war, one they would not be able to win. They took their hate of Clay to a whole new level. It was no longer Bravo against them, it was the entire Brotherhood and once you had an army that powerful against you, there was nowhere you could hide. They would get these bastards and they would string them up and make them experience true pain for what they had done to their kid. The world was going to burn and it started right when they touched down Stateside. 


	8. Chapter 8

The second the plane landed the guys were hitting the ground running. They had yet to be able to get a hold of Clay through his cell phone. Mandy got a ping off of it, and it showed that the phone was at his house. 

“Yoder got spun up with Alpha the night before we did. They are one hour out from landing.” Full Metal said.

“I am going to stay here and work the video. I’ll have our tech guys try and get the electronic voice overlay removed so we can identify them by their voices.” Mandy said, as she headed off and a run for the door. 

Everyone else, including Blackburn and Davis headed for the vehicles. “The video has gone viral, with over five million views and over fifty thousand comments. All of which are variations of he got what he deserved and you can see how much he loves it. Some are even saying that Clay is only playing like he’s unconscious.” Davis said.

“Jesus fuck. Fucking vultures, all of em.” Sonny said with a deadly rage to his voice. 

“Do we know Clay’s movements that night?” Ray asked.

“I don't, I’ll call Emma and see if she knows.” Jason said.

“He was at a party.” Vic said.

That caused everyone to stop in their tracks and turn to look at Vic. This was the first they were hearing about this.

“What?” Jason asked, and it was clear to everyone he was not impressed.

“He was at a house party.” Vic explained.

“And why the hell are we just hearing about this now?” Jason demanded.

“Because we’ve all been trying to get a hold of him. It’s been a little crazy the past few days, it didn’t click in when this happened until Mandy mentioned it yet now.” Vic explained.

“Start talking.” Full Metal said, with his own edge.

“That night a buddy of mine from Green Team, Kenny, had just rented a house with a few other Green Teamers and they were having a housewarming party. I was invited and apparently Yoder was too. I had already been at the house before Clay showed up. I was five drinks in, when I saw him in the kitchen. He had just gotten there. He was supposed to meet Yoder there, but he got spun up. Clay hung around, I don’t know how long. Me and him talked to a few people and then I went up to use the head and I didn’t see him after that. I figured he went home, he didn’t really want to be there to begin with. He had one drink that I know of, I made it for him, but then I don’t know what he had. I saw a couple drinks in his hand in the time he was there.” 

Vic had to be careful. He needed to give them information, but he had to make sure he didn’t give them too much information. Vic knew for a fact that they would be going over to see Kenny and Vic didn’t need Kenny or anyone at the house giving a different story.

“And you didn’t think to make sure he was ok? You didn’t stay with him?” Sonny said, annoyed that Vic had just left Clay on his own.

“We were at a house full of Seals. So no, I didn’t think I would need to check in on him. He’s twenty-seven, and a Tier One operator, I figured he would be safe in a house party with Seals.” Vic said back. 

“This isn’t Vic’s fault. We all wouldn’t have thought to keep an eye on Clay there. He was surrounded by a bunch of Seals. He should have been safe. Someone obviously slipped something in his drink at the party.” Ray said, in Vic’s defense.

“We’ll go there after we find Clay.” Jason said, before he turned and headed for his truck.

The others all followed, not even saying anything. They piled into three vehicles and headed straight to Clay’s house. On the way there Sonny continued to call Clay, hoping that he would turn his phone on and actually get a hold of him, but all he got was voicemail. A voicemail that was full according to the automated message. They pulled into Clay’s house and the first thing they all noticed was Clay’s truck wasn’t in the driveway. They got out and headed straight around to his front door. Jason tried the handle and he was surprised it was unlocked. 

“Clay!” Jason yelled, as he headed inside.

He took a quick look around to see if Clay was in the living room area, but he didn’t see him so he ran up the stairs to Clay’s bedroom, the guys hot on his trail. Jason walked into Clay’s bedroom and immediately could smell the faint scent of blood in the room. He noticed the sheets weren’t on the bed and the comforter was just tossed on it. Trent had gone into the bathroom, but there was no Clay.

“Shower is dry, but there’s a towel just tossed on the floor. Also found this in his sink.” Trent said, as he left up the morphine injection pen.

“Empty?” Jason asked.

“Yup, full dose is gone.” Trent answered.

“How did he get one of those?” Vic asked.

“Clay always carries one in his pant pocket in case one of us needs it. He probably just forgot it was in there when he came home.” Trent explained.

Cerberus was going all over the room smelling it, trying to see what he could come up with. He placed his head down on Clay’s bed and whined.

“Ok, so he was drugged at the house party and was brought here. Either in his own truck or someone else’s. They get him up here, they rape him and video tape it, they leave. Clay wakes up so many hours later, he showers, takes a shot of morphine, and then strips the bed.” Blackburn started.

“With his allergy, whatever was given to him would have made him out of it and sick. He probably woke up and immediately went into the bathroom to throw up. And as we all know, he doesn’t like taking narcotics, so for Clay to take a full dose, he was in serious pain.” Trent explained.

“Ok so he’s got the bed stripped, he wouldn’t have washed em, he would have tossed em. They might still be in the garbage.” Sonny said.

“Search the house, see if he’s in another room.” Jason said.

They all headed out and made their way throughout the house. Jason and Trent headed out to check the garbage to see if they could find the sheets. Trent opened the lid and saw the ball of sheets.

“Boss.” Trent called out.

Jason came over as Trent put on a pair of gloves and pulled out the sheets. They both saw the extensive blood on the sheets as well as the objects. 

“Fuck. Could he still be bleeding?” Jason asked, concerned about the amount of blood on the sheets.

“Depends. It looks more then it probably is because it would soak up on the sheets and spread faster. He still should have gone to a hospital to get checked out. Even if he didn’t want to report it, he could have lied about his name. He knows how dangerous this could be, plus with his allergy there’s no telling how the roofie affected him.”

“He wouldn’t have been thinking clearly, you know that. He would have panicked. We all would have.” Jason said, in Clay’s defense.

“I know. He took a shower, so he got rid of any evidence on his body. These sheets are the only thing we’ll have to try and find physical evidence of who this person is. We need to put them into something.”

“There’s large garbage bags under the kitchen sink.” Jason said, as he headed inside to grab them.

Trent waited until Jason came back and then they carefully placed the bedding and the objects into the bag. It would need to go to the base for testing and hopefully they would be able to match someone’s DNA to it. Chances were, Clay’s rapist was in the Navy. They headed inside with the bag as the others all gathered in the living room.

“There’s no disturbances anywhere else in the house. It doesn’t look like Clay went into the other bedrooms to sleep. The couch has a pillow and blanket on it. We found his cell phone across the room. Best guess, he laid down on the couch and threw his phone when the texts and emails started to come in.” Blackburn said.

“His phone was dead, but it’s not damaged. I’ve been going through it, he had over a hundred voicemails, and thousands of emails and text messages. He was tagged in the video so every time someone commented on it, that comment was sent to him via email. He has over fifty thousand emails. The emails and texts are still coming in from people sending them right now.” Davis said, from the kitchen as she had Clay’s phone hooked up to his charger.

“Any names or numbers we can run?” Full Metal asked.

“Plenty of phone numbers, but no names. Not everyone was smart enough to block their number. We’ll run the numbers we can and get their names.” Davis answered.

“He’s got to be somewhere, so either he called for a ride or his truck was here. Meaning whoever they were, drove him home.” Ray said.

“His door was unlocked, that’s not like him. He probably left after seeing those messages. In his emotional state he just left.” Brock commented.

Blackburn’s phone rang and he instantly answered it.

“What do you got Mandy?”

“Nothing on the video yet, we’re still working on it. I was so focused on finding Clay’s phone, that I didn’t even see a secondary signal coming from his house. There’s another phone in that house.”

“Can you tell where?” Blackburn asked.

“Based on the blueprints, it’s a bedroom upstairs. I can guide you.”

Blackburn turned and headed up the stairs. He followed Mandy’s directions that led him to Clay’s bedroom. He went over to Clay’s bedside table and opened the drawer to see a laptop. He headed back down the stairs and ended the call. 

“Mandy found a secondary signal coming from the house. It’s coming from this laptop that he had in his bedside drawer.” Blackburn said, as he handed it over to Davis.

Davis opened it and started to look through it.

“Why would a signal be coming from a laptop?” Sonny asked.

“He’s got a security system on the house. The feed is connected to the laptop.” Davis answered, as she pulled it up.

“He’s got an alarm. How would that be giving off a signal?” Jason asked, confused.

“It’s not just an alarm. He has multiple hidden security cameras all around the outside of the property. The feed from them goes right to the laptop.” Davis explained.

“He has cameras? So then he could have these bastards on camera.” Sonny said, now very interested.

“I’m already on it.” Davis said. 

“You didn’t know he had cameras?” Ray asked Jason.

“No, just the security alarm. He said he wanted to install one for when we are away. It made sense with him no longer living in an apartment building.” Jason was not happy that Clay didn’t tell him there were cameras as well.

“Got it. So that night the cameras were on as you can see Clay driving away. But around two hours later, the whole system is turned off, cameras and the alarm. It doesn’t come back on.” Davis said.

“Can it be something that Clay could control from his phone?” Blackburn asked.

“Nope, it’s only controlled through the laptop or the main panel. Whoever turned it off, had to do it remotely by hacking into the system. It’s not something Clay would have done. There’s also saved footage on here from additional attacks on his home. There’s a brick through a window, and one night his tires to his truck were all slashed.” Davis answered.

“So he’s been hiding things from us?” Sonny said, pissed off.

“You better not be thinking about blaming him Sonny.” Jason automatically said with an edge to his voice.

“I’m not, but he’s obviously been hiding things from us. We should have known about this shit.” Sonny said.

“That’s not important right now. We need to find him. His phone is here and so is his wallet, but his keys are gone. So he must have taken his truck and driven somewhere. Davis, go back to base and start working on pinging his truck’s GPS. Vic and Brock, you stay here just in case he comes back. Trent, head to the hospital and see if he was found and brought in. He could be under as a John Doe. The rest of us will go to the house party and see what the hell they know.” Blackburn ordered.

The others all jumped into action. The guys all headed for the trucks so they could make their way to the party house. 

“Derek just texted me, they landed. He wants to know where you want them.” Full Metal said.

“Have them on standby at the base. See if Mandy could use them if they need to do something. I want them ready just in case. Have Yoder meet us at the party house. I want to know exactly who this Kenny person is.” Jason said.

He wanted to know if this was somehow planned. That the party was just a cover to get Clay to the house where he could be drugged and raped. Jason wanted to know who Kenny was and that was something that Yoder would be able to tell him. They pulled up to the house and saw that Yoder’s truck was already here. They all got out of their vehicles and Yoder got out of his truck and met them.

“Anything?” Yoder instantly asked.

“Not yet. His phone was at the house along with his wallet, but no keys or truck. His trucks not here, so it’s looking like whoever it was, drove him home.” Jason answered.

“Is his license updated with his new address?” Yoder asked.

“I don’t know, why?” Jason said back.

“Because Clay’s always been anal about keeping his address under wraps. Some of the guys in Team Three didn’t even know where he lived back in Cali. If it’s not on in license, then someone who knows his address has to be involved somehow. Whether that is just releasing the information or participating.” Yoder explained.

“Alright, that’s an angle we’ll look at. I want to know about Kenny and this party.” Jason said, as he moved on. 

“Kenny was solid in Green Team. He’s on the short list like myself to be drafted when a spot comes up. Right now he is working as support to Romeo. He was always a team player in Green Team, even stayed late to help other cadets with their shooting and the training course. He didn’t have a problem with Clay. He was one of the few that focused on his own skills and didn’t have opinions about him. We’ve shared beers together plenty of times and I’ve been over at his place before. When he told me about his housewarming party I invited Clay so we could hang out. But I got spun up before I could even make the drive over here. Clay texted me back saying he was just gonna head home, to be safe and we would grab a beer when I got back.”

“Alright, you tell me if anything Kenny says sounds like a lie.” Jason said, before he turned and headed towards the front door.

Jason knocked and it only took a moment before the door opened. Kenny was standing on the other side and they could all tell he was waiting for this.

“Come on in.” Kenny said, as he moved back.

They all headed in and Kenny walked over to the living room speaking as he did.

“I swear to you Master Chief, I don’t know anything about what happened to Spenser.” 

“Why don’t you tell me what you do know.” Jason said, keeping an edge to his voice.

“I don’t know when he got here. I left the door unlocked so people could come in. The house was packed, by the end of the night there had to be two hundred people in and out of this place. Not all of them were military, a good chunk were civilians that were a friend of a friend that heard about the party. I saw Spenser walking around with Vic roughly around nine or so that night. He had a drink in his hand. Later on I saw a shot in his hand. But that’s all I noticed. I talked to some of the guys that were here, and they all said they only saw him with a drink and a shot. They never saw him with another drink. Bobby saw Vic give Spenser the shot, but we don’t know who gave it to Vic or if he made it. Just like the first drink. I didn’t see any arguments or fights. None of the guys that I talked to did. One minute Spenser was here and the next he was gone. I figured he went home. He drove his truck, the girl Bobby was trying to get with, noticed it and made a comment about wanting to sleep with that guy. The truck was gone when I went out to get some fresh air around midnight.”

“When did Vic leave?” Blackburn asked.

“No idea. After midnight, it gets blurry. Look, we all got the notification for the video the next morning. It was sent out to everyone practically in the Navy. Guys from Team Five were texting me about it. It was a mass email that went to tens of thousands. It seems like the only people that didn’t get an email of it were the ones connected to Clay, including Team Three. Me and the guys, Roger and Jimmy, we tore this whole house apart looking for any drugs of any kind. We didn’t find any. We also reached out to everyone we could that was here and went through their photos, but they never got Clay.” Kenny said, as he moved over to the kitchen to pick up a flashdrive. He handed it to Jason as he continued. “All of their photos are on the drive for you to go through yourself. There is also their info as well if you need to reach out to them.”

“And you just took the initiative on yourself?” Full Metal asked, skeptically.

“Ya we did. Look, I don’t have an opinion on Clay one way or the other. He’s a solid guy and that’s all I need to know. But in Green Team you learn within that first week that you, Master Chief hold a lot of weight in who gets picked for a team and who doesn't. A bad review from you and you can kiss your chances of getting onto a team goodbye.” Kenny turned to look at Yoder. “You know that better than anyone. Top of the class, we all knew you were getting on Bravo, and then Vic, a middle of the road guy, gets picked over you and no one will touch you.”

“That’s not why I passed over him.” Jason said, still regretting his decision.

“Doesn’t matter. You don’t get a golden ticket by you, you get kicked out of the chocolate factory. It’s why I always follow the unofficial rule.” Kenny said.

“Which is?” Full Metal asked.

“Don’t fuck with Baby Hayes.” Yoder answered.

“What?” Jason asked.

“Everyone in Green Team knew how special Clay was to Bravo and to you. Most of us called him Baby Hayes, because a bad review from him, could also do damage to your career with the Upper Brass. It was also clear by the amount of time the two of you were together that he was special to you. So you don’t fuck with Spenser, messing with him only gets Bravo and all of DEVGRU on your ass. So ya when I found out this morning that he had been drugged and raped, I knew you would be coming by at some point. He had to have been drugged here, so I made the initiative to investigate as far as I could. I’m not looking to be flipping burgers for minimum wage.” Kenny answered honestly.

“Well, it’s nice to know you care about what happened.” Sonny said, not impressed.

“I do care. What happened to him, what he is going through now, it’s fucking bullshit and I am disgusted that people who have sworn to protect this country would do this to a fellow brother. It’s dishonourable and as far as I am concerned, every single person that left a nasty comment, should be dishonorably discharged for it. I might not know Spenser that well, but I respect the hell out of him and look up to him. Whatever happened in this house was not sanctioned.”

Everyone could hear the passion and anger within Kenny’s voice. He might not like Clay, but he was against what had happened to Clay. He sincerely didn’t know who had drugged or raped him. They did at least have the flashdrive with everyone’s photos and information they could comb through that if Clay couldn’t remember who it was. 

“I appreciate this.” Jason said, as he held up the flashdrive.

“If there’s anything you need me to do, don’t hesitate to ask.” Kenny said.

Jason gave a nod and they all headed out. Once they were by their vehicles Ray spoke.

“Do they seriously call Clay Baby Hayes?”

“People do ya, but it’s not meant in a degrading way at all. It’s meant as a respect thing. The name Jason Hayes is legendary, everyone knows who he is. Clay is quickly becoming legendary himself. Everyone knows he’s going to be taking over one day as Bravo One, he’s going to be the next Jason Hayes and then some. It’s meant as a show of respect for who he is and for what is to come from him.” Yoder explained.

“Fair enough. Now what?” Sonny asked.

“I’m gonna check my apartment and I’ll call Emma. Maybe she heard from him.” Jason said.

“We’ll head back to the house.” Full Metal said.

“I’ll go to the base and see what I can help them with.” Blackburn said, he needed to find Clay just as badly as the others. Clay was a member of his team, he was his responsibility and right now he was just out there possibly injured and sick. 

They all got into the proper vehicles and headed off. Jason was alone so he pulled his cell phone out and hit Emma’s name as placing it on speaker phone. Jason forced himself to focus on the road even though his mind was going a mile a minute. He was praying that Clay would be at his apartment. It would make sense if he didn’t want to be at his house alone. 

“Hey Dad, you’re back. How was it?” Emma’s voice filled up the emptiness of his truck.

“Em, have you heard from Clay?”

“Not since you guys got back from your last mission. Why?” Emma asked, slightly worried.

“Do you know about what has been going on with Clay and the social media page?” Jason wasn’t sure exactly how much Clay had shared with Emma and he didn’t want to start off in the wrong spot.

“Ya, he told me about it. I still can’t believe people are doing that to him. Did something else happen?”

Jason really didn’t want to tell her this. He knew Clay probably wouldn’t want her to know, but she needed to know how serious this situation was. He wouldn’t give Mickey the details, he could just tell Mickey Clay wasn’t feeling too great when they did get eyes on him. But Emma, he couldn’t lie to her about this, because she was older and she was so very close to Clay. He would need her to get through this.

“Baby a video was posted to the social media page, it’s gone viral. The night before I got spun up this last time, he went to a party at a fellow frogmen’s home. At the party he was drugged, roofied, and he was taken back to his home where he was raped.” Jason said gently.

“What?” Emma asked, and Jason could already hear the tears building in her eyes.

“They recorded it, and then posted it online. Its gotten over five million views and over fifty thousand comments. Each comment is sent to Clay’s email address, thousands have also sent him text messages or altered the video and sent it to him so it looks like he is moaning and begging for it. That was a couple of days ago, we just found out before we landed.”

“Oh my god. Is he ok? Is he in the hospital?” Emma asked, as the tears poured down her face. She couldn’t believe this had happened to Clay. He was one of the strongest people she knew. He was the best person she knew, he was such a good man, and to think someone did something so violent to him. It was heartbreaking.

“We don’t know where he is. We went to his house, but he wasn’t there. His phone and wallet were there, but not his keys. We are thinking he took his truck and drove off somewhere. I’m heading to my place to see if he’s there. Has he called you or anything?”

“No, I haven’t heard from him. I thought it was weird that he didn’t call to tell me about his first day teaching Green Team, but I figured he must have been busy with work or fell asleep. You said this was a couple of days ago, if he was driving up to see me he would have been here long by now.”

“He might not have left the State and he might have just drove off not that long ago. We don’t know how long he was home before he took off. If you hear from him, call me please.”

“Of course. I’m gonna come down too. I don’t have any exams, I’m gonna hop on the next bus out of here and come down.” Emma said.

Jason wanted to tell her she didn’t need to, but the tone in her voice told him there was no talking her out of it. Not that he could blame her, he would have done the same thing.

“Be careful and let me know when you get in. I’ll either pick you up or one of the guys will. I’m almost at the apartment. Is there anywhere that you can think of that he might go?”

“If he’s not at your place, then the only place I can think of is Rickety Bridge.”

“Where is that?” Jason had never heard of it before. 

“It’s a trail for North Landing River out on Princess Anne Road. There’s this old wooden bridge that goes over the river. Clay found it when he started Green Team, he likes to go there because it’s quiet. He told me once that he can go there and make the world quiet. It’s peaceful for him.”

“Ok, I’ll check it out if he’s not at the apartment. Thanks Em.”

“I’m gonna pack up and head out now. I’ll let you know when the bus will get in.”

“Be safe. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Jason ended the call and did his best to calm himself down. He just wanted to find Clay, he just wanted to find his son. He needed to hug him and tell him it would all be ok. He just needed to get eyes on him. Jason pulled into his apartment’s parking lot and once he parked he ran inside and up to his apartment. He walked in and quickly searched, but there was no Clay. It looked just as he had left it. Jason turned and headed back to his truck. Once inside of it, he didn’t start it right away, instead he placed his head into his hands and took a moment. He had been really hoping he would walk in to find Clay asleep on his couch or something. He really thought he would open that door and his son would be there. Jason had no idea what he was going to do if Clay wasn’t at the Rickety Bridge. He was technically missing, but at the same time he was an adult so it wasn’t like the police were going to be doing much. They could report it to NCIS, but again they couldn’t do much without an actual crime. And they couldn’t have a crime without a victim. It would be on the teams to track Clay down, but if they didn’t find him soon they would have to face the reality of going back to work with Clay out there somewhere.

Jason’s phone beeped for a text message and he pulled it out to see it was from Blackburn. 

**Come back to base, we have something.**

Jason didn’t bother texting him back. He just turned his truck on and headed off for the base. He was really hoping they would be able to find Clay and get this whole mess sorted out. After making the quick drive over to the base Jason noticed that some of the other guy’s vehicles were already here. Jason headed inside and went straight into their war room. He was the last one to arrive and he could feel the tension coming off of Blackburn. Something was going on that none of them were going to be happy about. 

“If you are about to tell us we are getting spun up, there’s no way.” Jason immediately started, fearing the worst.

“I’m not, this is about Clay.” Blackburn said.

“The Upper Brass better not be blaming him for that video.” Sonny said.

“They aren’t. The Upper Brass are all trying to find out who is in the video and what happened to Clay. Davis was able to track his truck’s GPS location. It is in a police impound lot.”

“He was arrested? Why don’t we know about it yet?” Full Metal asked.

Clay being arrested did make some sense. He knows himself if he was raped he would want to get shit faced and beat the living shit out of someone. Clay could have easily gotten into a bar fight.

“He wasn’t arrested. Yesterday afternoon a 9-1-1 call came in from a civilian that was out for a run on a trail in North Landing River.” Blackburn started, but Jason cut him off.

“I was just talking to Emma about that. Apparently there’s this old rickety bridge on one of the trails that Clay likes to go to get away from all of the city noise. I was going to check it out.” 

“So Clay wasn’t at your place?” Ray asked,

“No, and it looks like he was never there.”

“The civilian, the man, was running on the trail when he noticed a truck parked by an old wooden bridge. He didn’t think much of it. When he went down to the river to refill his water bottle, he noticed a body in the river.” Blackburn continued doing his best to keep his voice calm and even.

“Oh my god.” Yoder softly whispered, already fearing what Blackburn was going to say next.

“The man pulled the body out and called 9-1-1, but the person was long dead. There was no identification on the body so the police came and took it to the morgue where DNA was taken to run. Fingerprints were not viable due to being in the water. That DNA came back as Clay.” Blackburn continued.

“What?” Derek asked, softly.

They had to have heard him wrong. They had to have misunderstood what was being told to them. That was the only explanation to any of this.

“Clay’s dead, approximately twenty-two hours now. We were never notified because they didn’t run it through the military database, just CODIS and it came back as a partial match to Ash. They contacted him and he made the ID at the morgue. An autopsy was performed and they found water in his lungs. Cause of death is accidental drowning. From what I gathered from the police they didn’t find a suicide note in his truck or in the area, so they couldn’t rule it as a suicide. The Upper Brass was informed by Ash of Clay’s death just a couple of hours ago. They were working on making the notifications once the paperwork was in order for it.” Blackburn finished.

The room was dead quiet. No one knew what to say to that. No one knew what to think about it. The news hadn’t sunk in fully yet. Slowly, you could hear the news reaching each and every single one of their brains. You could hear the breathing in the room starting to pick up and become erratic. Yoder was the first one to break, he placed his hand over his mouth to try and muffle the wail of pain as he realised that his brother was not only dead, but he most likely killed himself. Derek went over to Yoder and pulled him into his arms as his own tears started to pour down his face. 

Sonny banged his hands against the table as tears went down his face. He did it again and Davis was at his side, putting her arms around him and giving him what comfort she could.

“No, they’re wrong. He’s not dead. He’s not dead.” Jason said, with anger flooding his voice.

Ray went over to Jason and he wrapped his arms around him. Jason struggled against Ray’s hold as he spoke.

“No, he’s not dead. My son’s not dead.” 

Jason struggled, but Ray held on. He knew Jason would calm down in a minute, he just had to wait him out. That didn’t stop his own tears from going down his face. After a moment Jason stopped struggling and he allowed his own tears to be released. He wrapped his arms around Ray and held onto his best friend as an unimaginable pain tore through his heart. Blackburn looked around the room and saw that everyone was in tears. Derek was holding onto Yoder, Davis was holding onto Sonny. Ray held Jason as his whole world came crashing down around him. Full Metal and Trent were leaning against the wall doing their best to collect themselves. Brock was holding onto Cerberus as Cerb whined, as if he knew what had truly just happened. The only one that wasn't in tears was Vic, but Blcackburn didn’t expect him to be. He wasn't close with Clay, it would be different for him. 

Blackburn knew that this was going to forever change the way Bravo operated. Clay’s death wasn’t being classified as suicide, but everyone in this room knew that’s exactly what it was. Clay had been cyber bullied and raped to the point where he took his own life. It took a good thirty minutes before the tears had slowed down in the room and the guys could get their minds back into thinking. When the sobs quieted down, Blackburn spoke.

“I’ve been told by Captain Lindell that the funeral is set for tomorrow at ten in the morning. We are trying to get Clay’s will, but his next of kin is Jason, that gives you the power over Ash when it comes to the funeral. Ash has been made aware of when the funeral will be and where it will be held, but it’s your decision Jason, if you want to allow him to be there.”

“No, he didn’t give a damn about Clay when he was alive. He doesn’t get to be there for this. Clay wouldn’t want him there. He wanted nothing to do with Ash.” Jason said, with a strength to his voice. Clay had told him he didn’t want Ash to have anything to do with his life, he wasn’t going to allow Ash to play the victim or the father to Clay now. 

“That’s fine we can keep him from getting into the church. I’m assuming you all would like to be pallbearers.” Blackburn said, and he knew the guys all would want to be. 

“I need to see him.” Jason said.

“I’ve already asked, but it’s been denied. He is with the mortuary and due to them being a military mortuary they are not allowing any visitors or viewings. The Navy is taking charge of the funeral and all of the arrangements. We are to be at the church for a ten o’clock start and then a small graveside ceremony for Bravo and any Tier One operator that wishes to be there for it. I don’t know who is going to be talking yet. I know Admiral Andersen was going to say a few words. I’ll have more on that later.” Blackburn said.

“I can’t even see him.” Jason said, hurt that he was being kept from seeing his son.

“I’m sorry, you can’t. The best thing you all can do right now, is to go home and be with your family, be with each other.” Blackburn said.

“What about Emma and Mickey, we should pick them up.” Ray said.

“Emma is on a bus to come down. She wanted to be here when we found Clay. I’ll go and get Mickey.” Jason said, as his voice shook.

“You can’t be driving right now brother. I’ll go get him.” Full Metal offered.

“I’ll be at Clay’s.” 

That was all Jason said before he headed out. The guys knew he needed time, they all did. Ray needed to get home himself to tell Naima and then break the news to his kids that their uncle wasn’t going to be coming back this time. Ray couldn’t believe he was going to have to break this to his family again after they had lost Nate not that long ago. Ray didn’t think he would ever have to break his daughter’s heart again, but now he was going to have to tell her that her favorite uncle was dead. Had died in the states, the one place he should have been safest. Vic went over to Sonny and placed his hand on his shoulder.

“Come on Sonny, let’s go grab a drink.”

Sonny gave a nod, a drink was exactly what he needed in this moment, or twenty of them. The two of them headed out with Trent following behind them. He would need to keep Sonny in line. Full Metal went off to pick up Mickey before he would join them at the Bulkhead. Derek went to inform Alpha of the news, while Yoder headed out to go and see Ali. He needed to see Ali and hope he could make this pain go away. Brock left with Cerberus, but he didn’t go far, just the cage room. Blackburn knew that after this Bravo would never be the same. 

XXX

It was roughly seven hours later when the front door to Clay’s house opened and Emma walked in. Derek had gone to pick her up at the bus station for him while he stayed with Mickey. Most of the guys were drunk, but Derek had offered to stay sober so he could drive anyone home. When Emma had texted that she was almost in town Jason had asked Derek if he could go and pick her up. Jason would have, but he was on his fourth drink and just couldn’t bring himself to get up off the couch yet. He knew once Emma got home that he would have to inform her and Mickey of Clay’s death. He would be keeping the fact that it was most likely suicide from Mickey, he didn’t want to confuse him or upset him more then he already would be. 

“Dad, did you find him?” Emma asked, as she came around the corner.

“Ya baby. Mickey!” Jason called out. He needed to do this now before he ended up having to have this conversation twice.

A door opened down the hallway and Mickey came out of it, joining them in the living room. 

“Come sit down guys.” Jason said, as he moved over on the couch so each one of his kids could sit on either side of him.

Emma sat down on Jason’s left as she spoke. “What’s going on dad?”

“Ya, you get Full Metal to pull me out of school and then you tell me when I get here, you’ll tell me what’s going on when Em gets here.” Mickey said. 

“I know. Something happened to Clay. And there’s no easy way to tell either of you this, so I’m just going to say it. Clay’s body was found yesterday. It looks like he accidentally drowned. He’s gone.” Jason said, fighting back his tears at saying it outloud.

“What?” Mickey asked, with tears building in his eyes.

“No.” Emma said, her own tears already going down her face.

“I’m so sorry. His funeral is tomorrow at ten. I know it’ll be hard, but we’ll get through this.” 

Jason didn’t believe it for himself. He knew the kids would recover from this, but he didn’t believe it for himself. His oldest son was gone, he didn’t know how to handle that. Mickey buried his face into Jason’s side and Jason wrapped an arm around each of his children as they cried. They had just buried their mother last year and now they were having to bury their brother. It was too much for any child to have to go through. Sometime later Mickey left to go hide out in his room at the house, leaving just Emma and Jason on the couch.

“Was it really an accident?” Emma whispered.

“Officially it’s being ruled as one, but unofficially it’s a suicide. He took his own life.” Jason answered, gently.

That brought more tears to go down Emma’s face. To hear that Clay had been in so much pain he had opted to take his own life, was pouring salt into the wound. Jason hated that he was bringing this pain to his daughter. He would have given anything to take it away, but he knew only time could do that. So he did the only thing he could do, he wrapped his arms around her and held her until she was ready to face the world. 

XXX

The morning for Clay’s funeral was surreal to every member on Bravo. They had gotten ready by just going through the motions of it. Sonny was still horribly hungover, but he had managed to shave and get into his dress uniform without throwing up, so he was taking that as a win for the day. Ray and Naima had shown up without the kids, opting to leave them with Naima’s mother. Both of them felt like the kids were too young to be sitting at a funeral. Jameelah was devastated last night when Ray and Naima had to sit her down to explain that Clay was dead. She had been up most of the night crying and asking to go over to Clay’s to see him again. Jason and the kids were the last ones to arrive, Jason was just barely hanging on. They joined the others just outside of the church and Blackburn spoke.

“A quick head’s up, Ash is here. We were told we could not prevent him from coming into the church due to him being Clay’s legal father. Though Alpha, made it very clear that he is to not speak at all and to sit in the back. They are going to be keeping a close eye on him.”

“He didn’t want anything to do with Clay and now he wants to show up and act like the grieving father.” Sonny said with a shake of his head.

“I know it’s hard, but it’s not about him today.” Naima said, trying to keep the peace. This was going to be hard enough on everyone. 

“Yoder is here with Ali, I told him they could sit up at the front with Bravo. I hope that was ok.” Blackburn said.

“No of course. He’s Clay’s brother, he should be there with us.” Jason said.

“Why don’t I take Mickey and Emma and go get into our seats.” Naima suggested.

Emma gave a nod and she put her arm around Mickey as the three of them headed in. 

“Admiral Anderson is going to get started, but he wanted to know if you would like to speak Jason.” Blackburn asked.

“I don’t have anything prepared, I don’t.” Jason said, and it was clear he wasn’t expecting to have to speak at the funeral.

“I think you should brother. He’s your son, no one knows him better then you.” Ray said supportively.

“Ya, it should come from you.” Sonny agreed.

“Just speak from your heart Boss.” Trent added.

Jason just gave a nod and Blackburn could tell he wasn’t sure about this.

“We’re going to get started in a moment. A quick head’s up, the church is full. Everyone from Green Team that Clay went through with are here, Everyone he’s helped in the next Green Team are here. Team Three, instructors from Buds and Boot Camp. Plus Admirals, Generals, Captains, Congressmen, Senators, and Aldermen from all over the country. There’s over five hundred people in there to pay their respects to Clay.” 

“Holy shit.” Full Metal said, shocked at the large number of people that had come out to say goodbye to Clay.

“It’s a lot. More than anyone expected.” Blackburn agreed.

“They’re probably here as some type of photo op.” Jason said, disgusted.

“Maybe, I don’t know. What I do know is that the people who knew Clay the best are the ones that matter. Don’t worry about anyone in there that didn’t know him, focus on the ones that did.” Blackburn said, hoping to avoid a fight today.

The guys gave a nod and Blackburn led the way into the church. He made his way towards the front where the others were while the guys got ready to bring Clay’s casket down the aisle. Jason went in front with Ray beside him, followed by Sonny and Trent, then Brock and Vic at the back. In front of all of them though was Cerberus. He would be leading the way. Brock was going to leave Cerb at home, but he knew how much Clay meant to him and how much Clay loved him. It didn’t feel right leaving him behind today. When it was time, they slowly made their way down the aisle to the sad music playing in the background. Once at the front they placed the casket down and made their way to their seats. Admiral Andersen walked over to the microphone.

“Good morning we come together today to say goodbye to a good man. Clay Spenser had often shared a seat at my diner table. He was a rare man that didn’t see color, race, gender or sexuality. He saw people, each unique and special. When my son, my only child, came to me and told me he was gay I didnt handle it as well as I should have. I didn’t really say anything, I just got up and walked away. We were living in California at the time, I went to the shooting range on base where Clay was. I had heard about a young gun making one hell of a name for himself. We didn’t say anything for an hour and then finally he broke the silence. Asked if he was allowed to ask me a question. I remember it was such a weird way to word the question. I asked him why he asked me if he was allowed. Clay just simply said a lot of officials hate being asked questions, he found it was better to ask first before asking the question. I told him to ask away. I wasn't expecting him to be so straight forward.” Admiral Anderson said with a warm smile. 

“He asked why I was so pissed off. I told him I wasn’t mad, just upset. I ended up telling him that my son had just tokd me he was gay and I didn’t know how to feel about it. I expected for him to move on, to not comment. But he did the exact opposite. He looked me right in the eye and said, ya so? Just like that, as if I had told him it was going to rain. I told him it wasn’t that simple and he asked me the one question that changed everything. Was he happy. We had a long conversation after that about how as parents you perceive your child growing up to be a certain way and when they throw you a curveball it can be hard to accept. To Clay it was as simple as my son being happy. Once I was able to see his point of view, I agreed with him. I went home that night and told my son I wanted to meet his boyfriend, that he would be coming over for dinner tomorrow night. Clay had become a fixture in my life and in my son’s. When my son got married, Clay was standing up there with him as a groomsman. 

Clay was a man that instilled change within you. He was a man that could take something complicated and simplify it. A man that you respected and you relied on. He holds multiple service medals and accommodations. He led over fifty missions while in Team Three and became a valuable member of Bravo Team. He was brave, courageous, intelligent and he was honest. His honesty was a breath of fresh air on any given day. He had no problem telling you exactly what he thought or what you needed to hear. 

His death is a tragedy that this world has to carry. We have lost a man full of potential. A man that could have changed this world and the military. His death is a loss that we will all feel for many years to come. I know my family will always feel the absence of his presence. Before his death, the paperwork for a Bronze Star with Valour was still being processed to be awarded to Clay. I am proud and honored to present to you all Clay’s fifth Bronze Star with Valour. He was to receive this due to acts of heroism on an operation in Yemen that could have resulted in the death of civilians and Tier One operators. And on behalf of the Commanding Navy Force I am proud to present this Bronze Star with Valour to Petty Officer Clay Spenser.” 

Admiral Anderson went over and placed the Bronze Star on top of the casket. Everyone within the navy also picked up on the new title of Clay. He had been promoted to Petty Officer. Admiral Anderson went back over to the podium and spoke again.

“While on tour with Team Three, they were often playing music and a few of them sang. Team Three has given us a video of the last tour they were on together. They felt it was appropriate to share it here today with all of you. Afterwards, we will hear from Bravo’s leader, Jason Hayes.”

Admiral Anderson went and clicked place on the laptop that was off to the side connected to the main screen within the church. He then went and took his seat as the video played. They all watched the screen as they saw Clay, Yoder and Brian sitting in chairs around a fire. They could hear the others from Team Three as well in the background. Yoder had a guitar and he started to play. To their surprise Clay began to sing.

_ “When we were young we were the ones _

_ The kings and queens oh yeah, we ruled the world _

_ We smoked cigarettes man no regrets _

_ Wish I could relive every single word _

_ We've taken different paths _

_ And travelled different roads _

_ I know we'll always end up on the same one when we're old _

_ And when you're in the trenches _

_ And you're under fire I will cover you _

_ If I was dying on my knees _

_ You would be the one to rescue me _

_ And if you were drowned at sea _

_ I'd give you my lungs so you could breathe _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ Oh brother, we'll go deeper than the ink _

_ Beneath the skin of our tattoos _

_ Though we don't share the same blood _

_ You're my brother and I love you that's the truth _

_ We're living different lives _

_ Heaven only knows _

_ If we'll make it back With all our fingers and our toes _

_ 5 years, 20 years, come back _

_ It will always be the same _

_ If I was dying on my knees _

_ You would be the one to rescue me _

_ And if you were drowned at sea _

_ I would give you my lungs so you could breathe _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ And if we hit on troubled water _

_ I'll be the one to keep you warm and safe _

_ And we'll be carrying each other _

_ Until we say goodbye on our dying day _

_ Because I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ If I was dying on my knees _

_ You would be the one to rescue me _

_ And if you were drowned at sea _

_ I would give you my lungs so you could breathe _

_ Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh _

_ Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er _

_ I've got you brother-er-er-er” _

The video ended with a close up of Clay smiling and looking at the camera. The video had pushed all of the guys over the edge. The tears they had been fighting back had broken free. Seeing Clay smiling and laughing one last time had cut deep. His son, the lyrics he sang, cut them down to their core. Because it was true, every single word he just sang was true and it was a reminder that they had lost him. 

Jason made his way up to the podium. He still had no idea what he was going to say, but he knew he needed to say something. He stood there looking around the room, taking in the faces of everyone he could see. He was surprised though to see so much emotion on their faces. That video of Clay singing on his last tour with Team Three had moved everyone to tears, especially those that served. Jason cleared his voice before he spoke.

“When I got here today and discovered how many Upper Brass and political figures were here, I was mad. I thought they were here for a photo op, just another excuse that they can use to try and make themselves look better. But standing here, looking around this room, I can see I was wrong. I see all of these powerful people, people that could destroy careers with a stroke of a pen. I see fearless men that will run head on into danger without a second thought for their own life. And everyone sitting in this church, are in tears over the loss of Clay. When Clay comes into your life one of two things either happen, you hate him or you love and cherish everything about him. For those of us who have been blessed and lucky enough to know him, we all know just how wonderful of a man he was. 

Clay was proof that you could come from nothing. Be surrounded by death and darkness and still grow up to be a good person. He joined the military because he wanted to help make this world a better place. He didn’t want to leave this earth without knowing he had done some good to change it. And he has. He changed it through all of the charities he has helped over the years. By eliminating targets that were a threat to thousands of lives. But most importantly, he helped this world by the change he made in all of us. Clay made you want to be better. He made you want to do better. Whenever it was said it couldn’t be done, he proved you wrong. He was not only the brains of Bravo, but also the heart. He took a team and turned us into a family. 

He became a kid brother, an uncle, a big brother and a son. My son. He had a smile that could light up a room and his laugh was contagious. If you knew him, you knew he was never far from a good book, and most of the time they were in a different language. He asked an insane amount of questions, his favorite was why. He believed that curiosity and creativity should never be told no. That asking questions was how we learn and through learning you generate a better understanding of the world. Once you have that understanding, you can then make strides to change the world. 

This world is a darker place now that Clay is no longer within it. The lives of the people he touched will feel the loss of his potential and his amazing light. There is a hole now in the family, one that can never be filled. Clay wouldn't want us to be sad though, he would want us to celebrate his life and keep his memory alive. The best way any of us can do that is by living our lives how he would have wanted us to. By being brave, generous, kind, and fighting to make the changes this world needs. Through us his light will keep shining. Every soul we save is one that Clay saves. That is the best way we can honor him.”

Jason paused as he turned to look at the casket before he spoke. “You will always be loved. You will always be missed and you will always be our Bravo Six. You’ll always be my son.”

Jason reached over and touched the casket for a moment before he picked up the metal star and went around and banged it into the lid. One by one the members of Bravo stood to do the same thing. Once the stars were in place the music started and they took up their positions. Cerberus led the way back down the aisle and out of the church. The other teams followed behind them and saluted as Clay was loaded into the hearse. Bravo then saluted as it drove away. The funeral was only half over, they now had to head to the cemetery for a graveyard burial. Everyone that was welcome at the burial got into their vehicles and made the drive over. Once there they all stood and watched as Clay was lowered into the ground buried. The whole process only took an hour, but Bravo couldn't seem to bring themselves to leave. Naima had already taken Emma and Mickey back to the house. Ali had gone with so he could keep Emma company while Yoder went to the Bulkhead for a drink with the teams to toast Clay. Ali would have loved to join them, but he didn’t want to put any stress on Yoder. He was proud to be gay, but Ali wasn’t stupid he knew people had a hard time with accepting him. Today and tonight was about Clay and Ali didn’t want it to be tarnished by someone giving them problems. Plus, Ali did like Emma and he knew she could use a friend tonight. 

“We should get going.” Ray said.

They were all standing there looking at Clay’s grave. Cerberus was laying on top of it whining. They could tell he was crying and they didn’t blame him. 

“Ray’s right, everyone will be waiting for us.” Trent agreed.

“Come on Jace, it’s time to go.” Full Metal said, as he placed a hand on Jason’s back.

Jason just gave a small nod. He didn’t want to go, it felt like he was leaving his son behind. Brock went over to Cerberus and bent down, he pet him as he spoke.

“Come on boy, we have to go.”

Cerberus whined, but he didn’t move.

“I know, I miss him too. But we have to say goodbye. We’ll come back and see him soon.” Brock promised.

Cerberus reluctantly got up and followed Brock. He wanted to stay with Clay though and Brock was well aware of it. Unfortunately where Clay went was the one place in this world where they couldn’t follow. One day, one day they would get to see him again, until then they would have to keep living and hope they make him proud.


	9. Chapter 9

Jason was sitting in Clay’s cage surrounded by all of his things. It still didn’t feel real to him. Clay couldn’t be dead, his son couldn’t be dead. It would have felt more real if it happened in the field. They would have been there for it, they could have helped him and tried to save his life. But this, killing himself, it didn’t feel real. The military had ruled it an accidental drowning, but that was only out of respect to Clay and what he had been through. What they had been unable to stop and prevent. Thanks to the Upper Brass not doing their jobs and getting the ones responsible for the attacks against Clay and the social media page, Clay had been drugged and raped. If that wasn’t bad enough, it was recorded and uploaded to the social media page where it went viral. It was all over the darknet, permanently out there in the world for any pervert to see. 

Jason couldn’t wrap his head around Clay taking his own life. He knew that experiencing rape was traumatic and he knew it would be harder on Clay because of him being on the spectrum. Still though, he would have come to him. He would have called and told him what happened. He just couldn’t picture Clay not reaching out to him. He couldn’t picture Clay just giving up and ending his life because of it. He knew from Clay’s phone he had received thousands of emails from the social media page and text messages from people. All of them were disgusting and abusive. Yet, Jason couldn’t imagine Clay just giving up. He was stronger than that. He was too stubborn to just roll over and give up. This was making zero sense to Jason and he knew he would never be able to move on until he figured it out. Until he knew why Clay had done this. The problem was, the only person he could ask was Clay and it was far too late for that question. 

Jason’s suffering solitude was disrupted by the door to the room opening. The guys all walked into the room and Cerberus instantly was going over to Clay’s cage and laying down with a whine. Cerberus loved Brock, but there was a special connection that he shared with Clay. There were plenty of times since Clay had started with them where Cerberus would sleep in Clay’s hammock instead of with Brock. Brock had chosen Cerberus, but it seemed like Cerberus chose Clay.

“He might never recover from losing Clay.” Brock said sadly as he went and sat down on one of the stools they had at the table.

“Don’t think any of us are.” Trent said sadly.

Vic stood there leaning against his cage. He had to make it look good that he was hurting just as much as them. He knew they would be upset by Clay’s death, but he also knew eventually they would get over it. They would see how much better the team was without Clay and they would be stronger than ever.

“I can’t believe he did this.” Sonny said, sounding completely broken.

“He was in a lot of pain Son. He wouldn’t have been thinking straight.” Trent said, gently. 

He was shocked just as much as the guys, but at the same time, the pain Clay had to have been going through, it could crush the strongest of men. They all knew guys who ended their lives, hell they had buried Swaney not that long ago from it. When a person reaches that level of pain, the whole world gets smaller and dark and the only way out they see is death. Clay could have easily been sitting on the small bridge for hours before he just jumped in. There was no suicide note, Clay most likely wasn’t planning on killing himself, but in the moment he let go and allowed himself to fall off the bridge into the water. It showed the amount of pain that Clay had been in. 

“When I find who did this to him. I’m gonna kill em. I don’t care what happens, he doesn’t get to live.” Sonny said, with a deadly rage to his voice.

The guys could all agree with him on that one. They all wanted to get their hands on whoever raped him and whoever recorded it to post on the internet. They had driven Clay to killing himself and they were going to pay with their lives. The door opened again and this time it was Blackburn that walked in.

“I have Clay’s official will.” Blackburn said, sadly as he went and handed it over to Jason, who was still in Clay’s cage. “He also left letters.” Blackburn handed a letter to Sonny, Ray, Brock, Trent, Full Metal and then turned to hand one to Jason.

Vic was not surprised that he didn’t get a letter. He knew Clay wouldn’t be looking to say goodbye to him if something happened to him. No one opened their letter, it was something they would do in private. They just tucked them away in their pocket to read later. 

“This also came in the mail for him.” Blackburn said, as he handed Jason another envelope. 

Jason opened it and pulled out the items that were inside of it. There were two name tags for his uniform, official ID and new dog tags. All with Clay’s new legal name. Jason stood up and went over to the table and placed the items down on it for the guys to see. The guys could all see clear as day Clay’s new name, Clay Hayes. 

“We talked about him changing it a few months ago. I filled out the adoption forms, all he had to do was sign it when he was ready. He was worried about what it would do to work. He didn’t want to jeopardize my career by people calling favoritism. I told him he was my son regardless of what paper was signed or what people said. That it was up to him. I didn't know he signed them.” Jason explained with a deep pain to his voice.

He had no idea that Clay had signed the adoption forms, but the only way for him to have changed his name within the military, it had to be legal. He was probably going to surprise him with it. 

“I’m so sorry Jason.” Blackburn said with deep remorse to his voice. 

Jason let out a shaky breath as he opened the envelope with Clay’s will. He knew this was something he had to do. They needed to get all of the technical stuff out of the way so they could just grieve. It was Clay’s last wishes and Jason was going to make sure he fulfilled them for him. Jason pulled the paper out of the envelope and began to read.

“Dear Bravo, let me start by saying I am sorry to have to do this to you. I know I was supposed to be the last one to die, but if you are reading this then I didn’t uphold my end of the promise. For that I am truly sorry. I’ve done my best to make this simple and quick for all of you. I don’t really have much. Any personal items that I own can be divided up amongst the family for whoever wants them. Feel free to donate what you think. Please include Yoder within the division of my personal property. He’s my brother and he deserves to have a say. 

Now for some of the more complicated matters that I have tried my best to get the process started should the worse happen to me. My book sales will continue to come in even after my death. Within this envelope you will have all of the paperwork you need already filled out with my information, all you will need to do is file the proper paperwork. All profit from my book sales will be equally divided up between Jameelah and Ray Jr, indefinitely. It will be automatically placed within a trust in each of their names for it to be used for their education.”

Jason paused to look at Ray. He could see the tears building up in his eyes. They never expected for Clay to have much of a will, but it seemed like Clay had taken the time to think it through and to get some of the paperwork already started. 

“I had no idea.” That was all Ray could get out as his voice cut out, thick from emotion.

“He loved them. They were a niece and nephew to him, he loved every second he could spend with them.” Jason said, as he could feel the pain building once again. To know that Jameelah and Ray Jr would never get to see Clay again. They would never get to spend time with him again. They would never get to learn one of the many things he had to teach them. They were robbed of that.

“He was a great uncle to them.” Ray agreed.

Jason let out a shaky breath before he continued again. “The house is bought and paid for and I am leaving it to Jason. I have already signed the transfer deed, it just needs your signature. I bought it to plan for the future. I bought that specific house though, because it was a slice of heaven. It was peaceful and that is something that you need more than any one of us. Keep it in the family for many future generations to come. My truck is to be signed over to Emma, it’s paid for so she won’t have to worry about it. Tell her if she ever drives it without wearing a seatbelt or drunk, I’ll know and haunt her forever.” Jason gave a small chuckle to that, because it was just so Clay. The relationship he had with Emma and Mickey were close, but especially Emma. They were currently at Clay’s house. Jason knew he should be there, but he needed to come in today and have a few moments alone. 

With another slow breath he continued. “I have no debt, it’s all been paid off. Within the documents you will find all of my banking information, everything you will need for the estate. As well as two additional trust forms that need to be completed. With the exception of what I have stated above, I am leaving everything to Emma and Mickey, to be split equally between the two. All money will be deposited within their individual trust. The trusts are educational trusts so funds can be used for their tuition. Once they turn twenty-one if they wish to not go to Post-Secondary or their schooling has already been completed. Any remaining amount will then be transferred over to their personal bank account.

With all of the technicalities out of the way, it’s time to discuss the most important aspect, my spot. I know it will take some time for you to grieve, to start to heal from my death. But when that time comes and you are ready, I would like to ask for you to consider giving my spot to Yoder. He’s my brother, he was mine before I was yours. He’ll be feeling the loss just as strongly as you and he could really use the home and family that Bravo has always given to me. He won’t let you down and he will make a great Bravo One, when the time comes. He loves being a number two, but he has everything it takes to make a great number one and he will do it because it’s what is best for the family. Trust me on this one, my instincts are rarely wrong. 

I am so sorry for putting you and this family through this. I love each and everyone one of you. You are my brothers, my family, my dad, I could not have asked for a better family. For a better home. I know it hurts and I am sorry for the pain that you are going through. But know that where I am is safe. I’m in a place where there is no pain, no bullets, no death, I am in the safest place in this universe and I will be here to give you a hug when your time comes, but it better be decades from now or I am going to be pissed. I will carry you with me for the rest of time, and I will always be there for you. If you find yourself down range all alone, I’ll be there watching your six. You will never be alone, and I will always have your back. It has been an honor to serve with you all. Until we meet again. Bravo Six over and out.”

Jason couldn’t stop the tears that were going down his face as he had read Clay’s will. That last section had cut them all deep. Jason looked up and saw everyone had tears either in their eyes or going down their face, including Blackburn. This was a loss that they would always feel. Jason thought losing Nate was bad, but losing Clay was a hundred times worse. Clay had made them a family. He had made them the team that they were today and now with him gone, Jason had no idea what would happen to them. They would never be the same and unlike when they got Clay, they wouldn’t become better. Jason had a feeling they would fracture, the Bravo team everyone knew, died with Clay. 

XXX

Full Metal sat in his truck in the base parking lot with Clay’s letter in his hand. He wasn't expecting to get one. He didn’t know when they were written, but he suspected they hadn’t been written that long ago. Clay had updated his will to include his new house and his book sales, this wasn't something done without thought. Still, he never expected for Clay to leave him a letter, they weren’t exactly close. He had given Clay his space, being a brother to him without feeling like he was being watched. Full Metal had seen the way all of the guys tended to be cautious when it came to Clay’s safety. They were a bunch of mother hens and it used to drive Full Metal crazy. He couldn’t understand why they got so protective of him. Why they always were worried about him in the field. Clay was talented, one of the most talented operatives he had ever had the pleasure of working with and knowing. 

When Clay had gotten blown up in Manilla, Full Metal had seen just the toll it had taken on the guys. They were devastated, only made worse by them not being able to see Clay until their tour was done. The month that Clay spent in the hospital and didn’t reach out to them or call them back was devastating to each and every single one of them. The only time they finally took a breath was when Clay had called them after they had gotten the people responsible. They could finally see their boy and see that he was going to be ok. A weight had been lifted at that point and it was clear to everyone how desperately they needed it. 

Full Metal could have easily gone back to Alpha and been Alpha One. But running with Bravo had shown him something he never thought he would see. Bravo was stronger than ever because of Clay. Clay was the heart of Bravo. He was the one that kept them together. Clay had healed them and made them a true family. He had even done the impossible and tamed Sonny Quinn. Clay was a precious jewel and when given the choice of going back to Alpha or rolling with Bravo, Full Metal picked Bravo. He picked Bravo, so he could help protect Clay and by extension protect Bravo where it truly mattered, their hearts. 

He never thought he would get close to Clay and in reality he wasn’t. They liked each other, they respected each other, but Full Metal was more like Sonny and Trent. He was always down for a drink and a good time. Clay preferred to stay in and read. He used big fancy words and he could rub elbows with big powerful political figures like it was nothing. Clay had come from nothing and he had built a life for himself that would make everyone proud. Clay could have easily been a senator if he wanted to be. He had a bright future in and out of the teams. Clay had gotten under Full Metal’s skin. He had somehow wormed his way into his heart and now he had to feel the loss. It was never easy to lose a brother, but this time around it hurt worse than the others. Full Metal let out a breath before he opened Clay’s letter.

_ Scott, _

_ I am sure you were surprised to get a letter from me. I don’t know the situation surrounding my death, but I do know the repercussions that my death will have on the team. You have always been strong, unshakable despite the obstacles that came your way or the environment that you found yourself in. That strength has always been an aspect of the team that I have come to rely on, come to find comfort in. Afterall, the situation couldn’t be that bad if you weren’t freaking out yet. I’m thankful that at the time of this letter, we have yet to be in a situation that caused you to panic. I am not sure how well that would end. I don’t need to write a letter to you telling you how much I have appreciated you, you already know I do. You knew it every time you saw me reading and you left me alone, unlike the guys. You gave me the space to be myself and to grow without hoverboarding over me. That’s what makes you a good man and a good leader. _

_ I’m worried about the effect that my death will have on the guys, specifically Dad and Sonny. I know you will keep an eye on them, and I know you will do your best to make sure they are safe and recover from this loss. I want you to know that I appreciate everything you will do for them. I appreciate you being there for them to continue to keep them safe. I wish I could have their back still, but it is easier knowing that your hawkeyes will be. Please don’t let them fall into the loss, don’t let Sonny go backwards and just get drunk with strippers every night. Don’t let Dad lock himself up in the house and never going out with the guys. It’s going to be on you to make sure they start to heal. It’s not fair to you, I know, but I know you can handle the weight. I know you will make sure they don’t self-destruct.  _

_ You’re a good man Scott. I hope you get everything that you want out of this world. I hope you get to have grandchildren and see them grow up. I wish you all of the best. Be safe, love the people you have in your life, see the beauty in the world and most importantly, never change who you are for anything or anyone.  _

_ Thank-you for everything. _

_ -Clay _

“Oh you little bastard.” Full Metal said, as he wiped the tears that had escaped down his cheeks.

He didn’t think Clay’s death would hit him the same and yet one letter had him in tears. Clay was a great loss to the teams and to this world. Full Metal was going to do his best to honor Clay’s wishes and be there for the team, especially Jason. He was going to make sure Bravo didn’t get destroyed by his death. It was the least he could do.

XXX

Trent sat down on his back deck with a beer looking out at the ocean in the far distance. It was barely the afternoon and he was already drinking a beer, normally he would make himself wait until at least four or five at night, but today he just didn’t care. His kid brother was dead and buried, he deserved a fucking beer. Trent had pride himself on being the best medic within DEVGRU. He worked endless hours studying, taking courses and reading every medical book he could get his hands on just so he would be prepared for anything to come his way. And the one time his brother needed him, he wasn’t there to save him. Trent knew logically there was nothing he could have done to save Clay. Clay had died when they weren’t even in the country, there was no way he could have helped him. Yet the guilt was strong. He was the family’s medic, it was on him to keep them alive, to get them to the hospital so they could be fixed up. He was the one to help manage their pain, get them through physio, help them when they were sick. It was his responsibility, but also who he was. He was the caretaker, a role he easily and willingly took on and he had failed not only Clay, but all of his brothers. 

Trent never thought Clay would ever take his own life. He knew it was hard for the guys to accept, to understand why. Trent was in a different position then them, because he was a medic. He understood better then any of them the damage a brutal rape like the one Clay went through had on his body. The pain he would have felt when he woke up. The drugs in his system would have made him sick. He would have woken up sick, exhausted, in pain and feeling like complete shit. He would have been confused, and devastated once he discovered the truth of what happened to him. That was just physical though, the pain Clay was in mentally and emotionally was stronger then any physical pain he was going through. 

Trent knew that Clay would have been traumatised and tortured every time his phone went off with a new email or text message. He had read close to a hundred of them and he himself felt a deep pain for Clay. They were horrific and graphic and each of them were telling Clay how much he must have enjoyed what happened to him. The mental and emotional trauma after being raped was always worse than the physical damage done. Trent understood that fully and Clay would not be the last man to take his own life because the mental trauma was too great. Trent couldn’t be mad at Clay over it; all he could do was hope that Clay found some peace now. 

Trent picked up Clay’s letter and got ready to read Clay’s last words to him. It wouldn’t be easy, but it was something he needed to do. 

_ Trent, _

_ I think it’s important to thank-you before anything else is said. Because of you I have gotten to live more days. You were the one that kept me alive after getting hypothermia, pneumonia, a beating, you got me through TB and helped me figure out what medications that I can take and what ones I can’t. You were the first true medic I have ever had the pleasure and honor working with and I can never repay you enough for all of the hours you put in to ensure I would be ok. I was able to have more time on this earth because of your efforts. I don’t know what the situation will be surrounding my death, but I want you to know that no matter what the situation is, it’s not your fault. I know you would have done everything you could to keep me alive. My death is not on you, it’s on whoever killed me. Or myself if I did something stupid trying to save someone.  _

_ I love you, you are one of my big brothers I couldn’t have made it as far as I have without you. I want you to have an amazing life. I want you to find love and settle down with a wife who loves you and your career. I want you to go and explore the world, see all the beauty within it. You see so much death and suffering, more so then we do because you’re a medic. You see the world differently than us. It’s why you need to see the beauty it has to offer too. I know you don’t like taking vacations and leaving the team without a medic, I get it, but you can’t just focus on our health. You have to focus on your own mental health as well, and part of that is taking the time you need to reset so you can come back to the team stronger than ever. _

_ You’re a wonderful man, an amazing brother, you helped me become the man that I am and I will forever be grateful to you. Keep fighting, keep learning and keep living.  _

_ -Clay. _

Trent gave a sad smile as his tears rolled down his cheeks. Leave it to Clay to try and make him feel better. He wished he could have saved Clay from this pain. He knew eventually he would have to let the guilt go and move forward, that day wasn’t today though. Today was for drinking and then tomorrow he would make sure he was living his life in a way that would make Clay proud. He would honor Clay and his memories by keeping his brothers safe and maybe, just maybe, he would take a vacation. __

XXX

Brock sat on his couch that night with Cerberus curled up next to him, head in Brock’s lap. Ever since Clay had been missing Cerberus had been beside himself. He was constantly looking for Clay, trying to sniff him out. Now that Clay was gone Cerberus was feeling that loss. Brock could already tell that Cerberus was not going to be getting over Clay’s death any time soon, possibly never. He didn’t want to eat this morning, he didn’t want to go for a walk. Brock had managed to get him to go outside long enough to go to the bathroom, but that was it. Brock had never gone through this before. When Nate had died, they weren’t that close, so Cerberus wasn’t that affected by it. This time though, Cerberus and Clay were very close. Clay had often spent time with Cerberus when Brock needed to go away overnight or the weekend. Clay would go on runs with them, even when Clay got his house he would keep Cerberus overnight just so Cerb could play on the beach. Brock had said it before and it still stayed true. Cerberus had picked Clay as his human and now he was heartbroken.

Brock was heartbroken as well. Clay was his little brother, his first little brother. Up until Clay, he was the youngest. Brock never thought he would make a very good big brother, he never thought he would need a little brother. Clay had proved him wrong. Brock was surprised how easily he fell into the role of a big brother, but when it came to Clay, he found himself wanting to be there for him. He wanted to help protect him both physically and emotionally. When he got sick, he felt helpless. All he wanted to do was help him feel better. Clay had this gift of making you feel things that you never thought you could. He had a way of bringing that deep love into your life. He was Bravo’s heart, their glue to hold the family together. Brock wished he could have had the chance to speak with Clay. He would have told him that he loved him, that he would be there for him. If Clay needed to run away and hide from the world, Brock would have driven him anywhere in this world. He would have let him have Cerb so he didn’t feel so alone. Brock couldn’t help but feel like out of all of their brothers, he would have been the one to get through to Clay. He would have been able to talk him down and get him to keep fighting. To get Clay to see that his brothers would fight if he didn’t have the strength to. They could have gotten through this, they could have gotten him through this. Cerberus whined and Brock looked down at him and ran his hand over Cerb’s head.

“I know Boy, I miss him too.” 

Brock reached over and picked up Clay’s letter. He knew he needed to read it, but he just wasn’t sure he could handle it. At the same time, there wasn’t ever going to be a time where he would be ready for it. With a deep breath, Brock opened the letter and began to read.

_ Brock and Cerb, _

_ Let me start by saying that my life was made brighter with you both in it. I always wanted a dog, a pet, but I was never able to have one. Cerb, you were my first dog and I knew without a doubt that I could never have anyone but you. I was honored and blessed to have you in my life. You were always there for me when I needed a cuddle. You always pushed me when I was exhausted to run one more mile. I will miss you so much boy and I am so sorry you will have to feel this pain. If I could, I would take it away. Be there for Brock for me. Make sure you take care of him, because he’s going to need some cuddles from you.  _

_ Brock, thank-you for being you. When I think of all the times you have been a silent support in my life, I can’t thank-you enough. All the times I was going through something, you would always be there for me. Sometimes we would talk and sometimes we would never say anything. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it, how much it meant to me. I will forever cherish the moments we shared. Never stop being who you are, because who you are is so special and the team needs that. I love you both so much. Take care of each other and I will see you both again one day. _

_ -Clay  _

Brock didn’t even bother with wiping the tears away from his cheeks. He didn’t have to be strong for anyone right now. He could allow himself to feel this pain and he had every intention of doing just that. Brock looked down at Cerberus as he whined, it was as if Cerb was crying with him. Brock knew they would get through this together, but he feared that Cerberus would never recover from this. Bravo may have lost two brothers this week, Clay and Cerb. Brock just hoped they would both make it through this and they could honor Clay and his memory. All they could do was take it one day at a time and just hope the world wouldn’t look so dark one day. 

XXX

Ray made his way into his apartment. He made sure he was quiet because the kids hadn’t slept very well since they were told about Clay’s death. Ray Jr was so young he wouldn’t remember Clay, but Jameelah would always carry the loss. Ray saw Naima sitting on the couch and she held her finger up to her mouth to signal that the children were asleep. Ray went over and sat down beside his wife. Naima instantly had her arm around Ray’s and placed her head on his shoulder. She noticed the unopened letter in Ray’s hands and she knew that Clay had left it for him.

“How were the guys?” Naima asked, softly.

“Rough. We got Clay’s will today. He started a trust for RJ and Jameelah. All of his book sales will automatically be deposited into them. They get them indefinitely.”

“Oh my god. I had no idea.” Naima asked, just as shocked as Ray had been.

“I didn’t either. He left the house to Jason to be passed on to Emma or Mickey. Emma got his truck and then everything else was left to Mickey and Emma, his whole estate will be placed in trust funds for them.”

“That’s amazing. He loved all of the kids and he made sure they would be taken care of. What else did it say?”

“He wants Yoder to take his place on the team. I don’t know if Jase will do it or not. A few months back, something none of us knew about, Jason filled out adoption forms for Clay. Clay didn’t sign them right away; he was worried about how that would affect Jason’s career. He didn’t want people calling favoritism on him. Clay signed them, but didn’t tell Jase. His new name tag and dog tags came in today too. He would have been Petty Officer Clay Hayes.” Ray said, with tears building in his eyes.

“I’m so sorry. I feel so bad for Jason, the pain of losing a child. I can’t even imagine.” Naima said, full of sadness towards Jason’s loss.

“I can’t even.” Ray said, unable to finish the sentence.

He looked down at the letter in his hand and he was afraid to read it. He had no idea when Clay had written it and he was worried about what it could say. They had a bit of a bumpy road out on tour and Ray didn’t think he could handle it if this was written during that time. He still couldn’t believe that he was gone. He had so much potential for the world and now it was just gone, ripped away from all of them. Ray knew Clay was in a great deal of pain, but at the same time he felt angry towards him. He wished Clay was here so he could scream at him and tell him how selfish he was being. You don’t just get to give up and leave your brothers behind to deal with the mess. Clay knew better then anyone how it felt to lose a brother to suicide and he had done the exact same thing to them. It was bullshit and Ray honestly didn’t think he could ever forgive him. 

Ray handed the letter over to Naima, who took it slightly confused.

“I don’t want to read it.”

“I know it’s hard baby, but he left it to you for a reason.”

“I don’t care. I’m too angry with him to read it. He received so many medals for valor and he took the cowards way out. He betrayed the brotherhood, he betrayed this family by taking his own life. He committed the ultimate sin and now we get to deal with the fallout. We get to take on the pain, our children do. And what does the military do? They promote him. He kills himself and they promote him, what kind of message does that send?” Ray said no longer hiding the anger he felt towards Clay and his actions.

“He was in pain Ray. He wasn’t thinking clearly. You know that.” Naima said gently.

“That doesn’t justify what he did. He swore he wasn’t like Ash, but he turned out to be exactly like him, a coward. I’m not signing those trust papers, our children don’t need blood money. They deserve better than that.”

“Baby.” Naima started, but Ray cut her off.

“I don’t want to hear it Naima. He knew better than this. He knew what mess he would be leaving behind for us to clean up. He knew he could have fought, that we would have fought with him. He chose to take the cowards way out and kill himself. He broke our children’s heart, there is no forgiving that. There’s no forgiving this.”

Naima just simply gave a nod. She knew there was no point in arguing with Ray right now. He was too hurt and angry at the situation. She would have to give him time. She wouldn’t throw the letter out, she would keep it tucked away safe in a drawer until he was ready to read it. Until he had some time to heal from this loss. Until then she would be patient with him and allow him the time to heal however he decided to do it. 

XXX

Sonny sat in one of the booths along the wall drinking a beer at the strip club. He still couldn’t believe that Clay was gone. That his best friend, his little brother, was gone. He wasn’t going to be able to tease him about reading when they were watching the game. He wouldn’t be able to look over at Clay’s cage and see him cleaning something. He wouldn’t be able to know that when shit hit the fan overseas, Clay working overwatch always had their backs. You could count on him hitting the targets that truly mattered. Ray was great, don’t get him wrong, but Clay, he had a gift and they all knew it. Sonny had seen him run backwards and make a kill shot with a single bullet as he did it. The kid had aim like no one he had ever seen before, himself included. One time Sonny had even made a bet with Clay that he couldn’t throw knives as well as he could shoot. The result was Sonny having to go into work in his combat boots and a pink bikini. Sonny still couldn’t believe it. The fucker didn’t miss a single one, all bullseyes. They came to find out when Clay was a kid after his grandparents died, he would throw things at a tree to try and keep himself from dying of boredom. The end result, he had wicked superhuman aim. 

Sonny let out a shaky breath before he downed his shot of whiskey. He knew Clay had written him a letter, but he was scared to read it. It made it feel so final. These words that he had written would be the last words Clay ever spoke to him. Sonny wasn’t ready for it to be the last. He wanted to go into work tomorrow and see Clay’s smiling face. He wanted to joke around with him and run the training course with him. He just wanted to go to work tomorrow and see his best friend. Sonny still couldn’t believe that him and Clay had gotten so close. In the beginning he wasn’t so sure about Clay. Yes he wanted his skills, but Clay as a person, that took a bit of getting used to.

Clay had proved himself in the field and then when on tour after that helo crash, Sonny was surprised to see how much he was worried about Clay. Only when they did get to them, Clay was taking care of business and had gotten everyone in shelter, organized and had been keeping Jason safe. He had proved himself that day to not only just Bravo, but Alpha as well. Sonny had been so relieved to see Clay was alive and well after the crash. He had taken charge and showed Sonny just what type of person he was. From then on they had started to get close and now Sonny was a whole new person just because he had known Clay. Clay had made him a better man, a better brother and a better operative. And now he was gone and Sonny didn’t know how to handle his death. It was hitting him harder than anyone else he had lost. It was just a tragedy, his death was a tragedy to this world. Sonny wished he could find every single asshole that had sent Clay a text message; that had commented on the video. That he could find the ones responsible for the rape and video, he would kill them. Each and every single one of them he would kill em. That is what they deserved and worse for what they had done to a beautiful and gentle soul.

“What has you looking so sad hot stuff?” 

Sonny looked over and saw Candy sitting down next to him. He had known her since he started coming here a good ten years ago. She used to be a stripper, but now she was a manager and Sonny was proud of her. She had worked her way up and now she was a proud single mom that was making good money. The American dream right there.

“I just buried my best friend yesterday.” Sonny said, sadly.

“I’m so sorry sweetheart.” Candy said, with sympathy as she went and started to rub a hand up and down Sonny’s back.

“He was a great guy. Better than me. And now he’s gone.” A few tears escaped Sonny’s eyes and Candy could tell he was hurting a great deal.

“Did he leave that for you?” Candy said, with a nod to the letter on the table next to the whiskey glass.

“Ya. Left one with everyone on the team. His last words to me are in that envelope.”

“I can’t tell you that I understand how you feel, I’ve never had to go through the heartbreak that you have had to. But I think you should read it. He was your best friend, I bet you anything he made sure his last words to you were words that he knew you would need to hear right now.”

“Probably right about that.”

Clay knew him better than anyone, better than himself half the time. He would have made sure to tell Sonny exactly what he needed to so he could heal from his death. That is what made Clay so great, he was always thinking about other people and how he could help them. As much as Sonny wished he could toss the letter away and pretend like none of this ever happened, he knew he couldn’t. He couldn’t disrespect Clay like that by not even reading the letter he had taken the time to write. Sonny let out a slow breath before he reached out and picked up the letter.

“Do you want me to leave you alone?” Candy asked, gently.

“Naw, stay. Please.”

Sonny didn’t think he could do this alone. Candy gave him a warm smile, as she kept her hand on his back. Sonny opened the letter and began to read Clay’s final words to him.

_ Sup Percy _

Sonny couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Fucking asshole.” 

_ I knew I could make you smile one last time. I’m not going to get all soft on ya and tell you how much I love you. How much your friendship has meant to me. You already know all of that. I am sorry for dying and putting this hurt in your life. Don’t blame yourself, because there is nothing you could have done, no matter the situation surrounding my death.  _

_ Now, always make sure you have a twenty tucked into your boot when you go to the bar or the strip club. If you are alone, only let Candy have access to your bank card, she won’t steal from you. After four whiskeys you have to drink a glass of water so you don’t throw up in the morning. Your spare house key is behind the third brick five rows up to the right of your front door. Don’t forget to put it back when you use it, otherwise the next time you forget your keys in your truck you’ll be locked out. Don’t drink wine after you’ve been drinking whiskey, it makes you sick and miserable the next day. Leave yourself a note on the bottle so you don’t drink it when you get home from the bar or club. There’s no living with you the next day when you do that.  _

_ You cannot run thirty miles, no matter how much you think you can. I always lie to you and tell you we ran thirty when we only ran twenty. You are not designed to run thirty miles, you can barely do twenty. Your Spanish is worse than you think it is. Often you say one thing, but it is actually something completely different. I usually cover for you and tell them you were dropped on your head as a baby. Your gun cleaning kit is in your cage on the left hand side in the second drawer. It’s not on the right side where you keep swearing it is every time you go to use it. And yes, I do move it every time just to fuck with you.  _

_ I’m going to ask you to do something that is going to be hard for you to do at first and it’s not going to seem fair of me to ask this of you. I’m going to ask that you don’t go backwards. You’ve come so far, you were even able to have a stable relationship, you Sonny Quinn dated someone. You have so much to offer the world and a woman, more then just sex and horrible jokes. You deserve to come home to someone and not just that empty house of yours. I want you to keep moving forward and find happiness and love. That’s the best way you can honor my memory and our friendship. I know it won’t be right away, you are probably already at the strip club reading this letter. I know you’ll be a mess for a good month, but afterwards I need you to start healing and moving forward. You are too good of a man, you deserve more than just being a drunken man whore when you are Stateside. Be the man you were born to be. That’s how you can honor me.  _

_ I love you. You are my favorite brother, don’t tell the guys that. You are the best friend I have ever had and I am a better person for knowing you and being blessed for having you in my life. I’ll keep a cold one ready for you, but it better be piss warm by the time your cowboy ass gets up here. _

_ -Clay AKA Blondie, Wonderboy, Bam-Bam, GQ, Little Buddy, Peter Pan, Tinkerbell, Goldilocks, Captain America. To name a few. _

Sonny couldn’t help but chuckle slightly. It was perfect. Clay always knew what to say to him and this time was no exception. He didn’t get all touchy feely, they never needed to. Clay knew exactly how much he loved him and Sonny always knew how much Clay loved him. They never needed words for that. Clay’s letter was perfect. He said what he needed to say while keeping it light and brotherly. It was a letter that Sonny knew he would be committing to memory and reading whenever he needed to feel like Clay was there with him. He would make him proud, he would keep moving forward, not tonight, but soon he would be the man that Clay would want him to be. Sonny reached over and picked up his beer and raised it up towards the ceiling.

“Till we meet again Little Buddy.”

XXX

Jason made his way into the house and towards the living room. He still couldn’t believe Clay had left him the house. He didn’t know if he could live here, at the same time though, he couldn’t sell it. Even if Clay hadn’t left the house to him, he couldn’t bring himself to sell it. This was Clay’s home, something he had worked hard to obtain, something he wanted to have within his family’s future. He couldn’t just sell it, but he wasn’t sure he could stomach living here. It was hard enough trying to live in the house that him and Alana had purchased after her death. He had done it though, but the thought of living here, sleeping here, sent a knife deep into his heart at just the thought of it. Everywhere he looked it reminded him of Clay, of his son. He knew some people would find a warm comfort to that, but to Jason it was too painful and nowhere near comforting. 

Jason saw Emma sitting on the couch watching a video on her phone, she had tears going down her face. Jason made his way over to her and threw an arm around her shoulders. He saw that she was watching a video of her and Clay from the night they went to the drag show.

“I took this when we headed out to his truck. We had such an amazing time that night. We all danced and joked around. Yoder and Ali both gave me their numbers and Ali and me have been texting almost every day since then. They were all talking about coming up to New York one weekend now that Clay was teaching Green Team. We were going to have some fun and check out some of the clubs together. Clay and me had talked about taking a trip this summer to Paris. We were going to check out the art museums and the art district.” Emma looked over at her dad, with tears going down her face as she continued. “I don’t understand why he would do this. Why didn’t he just get in his truck and drive away until he could breathe again?”

Jason had made the decision to tell Mickey that Clay’s death was an accident, but he had decided to tell Emma the truth. Now he was starting to regret telling her that her big brother had been raped and killed himself. He didn’t want to lie to her, but this might have been the time he should have. Jason pulled Emma into his chest as he spoke.

“Sometimes baby, you get so consumed with pain that you don’t think clearly. I don’t think he meant to kill himself. There wasn’t a note left, I think he went to the bridge to try and get away from the noise like he’s done so many times in the past and he just let go. I don’t think he was planning on it happening.”

Jason truly believed that. He didn’t think Clay’s intentions were to kill himself. He believed that Clay was sitting on that railing and in a moment he just let go and fell. 

“I miss him so much.”

“I know, me too. Me too baby.”

There wasn’t anything Jason could do other than to hold onto Emma. She was hurting just as much as he was. He knew her and Clay were close, he was more than happy to allow it to happen. They were both his children and it made him feel better knowing that Clay would be there for them should his time come. Now that closeness was causing Emma a deep pain that Jason couldn’t take away. There was nothing he could do or say that would make her feel better, because there was nothing he could tell himself to make himself feel better. This was one of those things where words did nothing. There was nothing that could be done or said to ease this pain, only time could do that, and that was something Jason seriously doubted. 

It was just after eleven that night when Jason found himself sitting outside with a beer in front of a fire. Emma and Mickey had finally fallen asleep about an hour ago and Jason could finally have some time alone. He knew he should be going to sleep himself, he was exhausted after barely sleeping this past week, but he couldn’t bring himself to lay down. So Jason had started a fire and grabbed a beer so he could sit outside under the stars and finally read Clay’s letter. He was not prepared for it, but he knew there was nothing he could do to be prepared for something like this. All he could do was read it and hope it didn’t do more damage than good.

_ Dad _

_ This is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. I’ve written all of the guys’ letters, but I couldn’t seem to bring myself to write yours. I’m sorry if the writing is a bit messy, I can’t stop shaking. I’m crying as I am trying to write this, which is insane because I’m just going to see you tomorrow.  _

_ As a team leader, you have been more than I could have asked for. You are the first team leader that has ever allowed me to truly grow as an operative. You never told me to shut up when I asked you questions. You never wrote me up for insubordination when I spoke up without permission. Even though you could have done it a hundred times. I appreciate everything you have done for me in terms of being a team leader. You allowed me to grow and explore my potential without any boundaries. It was more than I could have hoped for.  _

_ As my Dad, fuck, I don’t understand how it happened. When I joined Green Team I was expecting DEVGRU to be just like the other Seal Teams. I figured it would be a group of guys working together. Some you might be friends with, but for the most part you just do your job and then go home. I never thought I would have a family. After what happened when I was younger and then how my grandparents died, I had accepted that I would never have a family. I would never have people I could rely on and be just myself with. Then I got Brian and Yoder and I figured that was it, that was enough. Then I got lucky enough to be picked by you. Bravo became my family, but then a miracle happened and I got to become a part of your own personal family. I got to have a sister and a little brother, both of whom I love with all of my heart. And I got you, a really amazing dad. I gave up hope a long time ago that I would ever truly belong somewhere. That I would ever have a dad in my life. You gave me the best gift in the world and I can never thank you enough for that. For touching my life the way you have.  _

_ I’m so sorry for whatever I did to die. I don’t know what it is going to be that does me in, but I want you to know that I’m sorry. I’m sorry for causing you this pain. For causing Emma and Mickey this pain. I never wanted to hurt you guys, especially you Dad. I hope you aren’t mad at me. I hope you can forgive me. I’m going to miss you. I’m going to miss the way you just naturally make me feel safe whenever you are around. I’m going to miss sitting by the fire with you. I’m going to miss the sound of your voice and your hugs. You once said that you felt like I was your son in another life. I hope that is true, because it would mean in the next life that we share, I’ll be your son again and I’ll get to see you. I love you so much, with all of my heart. I will carry you wherever I go.  _

_ -Clay _

Jason put his head in his hands as the tears poured down his face. Clay’s letter was harder to read then he expected it would be. He knew Clay loved him and the kids, but to hear just how much he did. How much he appreciated them, it was hard. All of this was so hard and Jason honestly didn’t think he was going to be able to come out on the other side of this. His son was gone, he didn’t know how he was supposed to move on and heal from that. He just wanted him back. He just wanted to be able to wrap his arms around him and hold onto Clay until he was ready to face the world again. He would have let him hide out for as long as he wanted to. He wanted him here so he could protect him and keep him safe until he was ready to be on his own again. He just wanted his son back and it was the one thing he couldn’t have. Jason couldn’t help but feel like he failed. He failed as a team leader, but worse, he failed as a father. He couldn’t keep his son safe and now his son was dead and there was nothing Jason could do to change it or make it better. There was a hole in his heart and it was never going to be filled. 


	10. Chapter 10

Jason was currently sitting in Clay’s living room. He refused to think of it as his living room. He wasn’t ready for that reality yet. The deed to the house still sat unsigned even though it had been a couple of days since he had read Clay’s will. He understood why Clay left the house to him. There were two reasons, one he wanted it to stay in the family, so eventually Emma or Mickey could live here and raise their family. For it to them be given to one of their children to continue on within the family. It meant a lot to Clay for it to stay a Hayes’ house. That passion was something Jason was going to ensure continued to live on. It was the least he could do for Clay. The second reason why Clay left it to him was because he knew how much good it would do for him. He knew how much Jason loved to hear the sounds of the waves crashing against the ocean. He knew how hard it was for him to sleep in total silence. Clay had left this house to him to help him heal from the loss of his son. Jason loved him for that, but at the same time it hurt. It hurt being here and seeing all of the good times they had in this house. 

Jason could still remember sitting here with Mickey as Emma and Clay walked out dressed in high heel boots and make up. Clay had tight black leather pants on and glitter on the side of his face. Jason couldn’t help but laugh when he saw him, not because of what he looked like, but because of that huge stupid smile on his face. Clay was the definition of confident and he had no problem dressing in drag and going to a drag show. Him and Emma looked so much like siblings that night, both of them were laughing and helping the other one get ready. They had allowed Jason to take pictures before they headed out. From what he had heard, it was a great night, one Emma would cherish for the rest of her life. 

Jason could remember all of the times they hung out on the couch watching movies. All the times he was watching football while Clay read a book, pretending to be paying attention to the game. The runs they had taken on the beach in the morning before breakfast. All of the dinners they had cooked. Jason had his own apartment, but it seemed like he spent more time over here then he did at his own place. Jason couldn’t help but feel guilt at the fact that he wasn't here the night Clay had been drugged and raped. If he was here, they never would have been able to rape him. He would have been drugged, but he would have been safe here with him. He would have called Trent to look him over and make sure he would be alright. They would never have been able to rape and record it if he hadn’t been alone. It was a guilt that Jason would carry around with him for the rest of his life. 

Today the guys and Yoder were going to be coming over so they could look through Clay’s things and see if there was anything personal they wanted to keep for themselves. Jason had sent Emma and Mickey back to school, something Emma wasn’t happy about. She wanted to stay longer, but she had exams and Clay wouldn’t have wanted her to lose this semester. Mickey was happy to get back, but mostly so he wouldn’t have to be staying where Clay had been living. They had both been given one of Clay’s new dog tags to carry around with them. Emma had already put her’s around her neck as a way to stay close with Clay. Jason had Clay’s old tags around his own neck. They had both said they didn’t want anything right now, but Jason knew that could change. He was going to let the guys look around, but he wasn’t going to be donating anything.

He wanted to keep everything still in its place for a bit longer. When the kids were older they might want one of his books or a memento he had from one of his trips. It was better to keep everything here so if they wanted it, it would be here for them. Jason knew he was just holding on to stuff just to hold onto some of Clay, but he didn’t care. His son was dead, he had every right to mourn and grieve however he wanted to. Even if that meant he refused to wash Clay’s used coffee cup from that morning. It was his right. There was a knock at the door and Jason didn’t even bother with getting up, the guys would let themselves in.

The guys all came around the corner and saw Jason sitting in the living room. They could see he had barely slept, but they didn’t think he would. It took a long time before Jason was able to move on from the death of Alana; they all knew the death of Clay was going to take even longer. 

“Hey Boss.” Sonny said, sadly.

It was hard for all of them to be in Clay’s house right now. All of them were painfully aware that Clay had been violated in his home. It was too fresh and it was making this harder, a lot harder. 

“Hey.” Jason simply said.

“How are we going to do this?” Vic asked, gently.

The guys all knew he had never gone through the death of a teammate before and it was natural for him to have some confusion and questions. What the guys didn’t know was how much Vic didn’t care to be here. He just wanted to get this done and over with so the guys could all move on. He wanted to go back on operations and show the guys just how much of an asset he would be.

“We can go through his things and if there is anything you’d like to keep as a memory of him, you can.” Ray explained.

“Yoder should be here soon. If you guys are fine with it, he should get first pick.” Jason said.

Yoder had been the one that knew Clay since he was nineteen years old. He had watched Clay grow up and become the man that he was. They were brothers for a lot longer than Clay was their brother. It only seemed right he would get to look through it first. 

“He’s known Clay for almost a decade, he deserves to have first look through.” Trent said.

“Ya.” Sonny agreed.

There was a knock at the door before it opened and they guys all knew it was Yoder. Cerberus went over to the front door and Yoder gave him a pet as he walked in. Cerberus followed Yoder into the living room. 

“Thank-you for including me in this.” Yoder said, as he walked into the living room to see all of the guys there.

“You were a brother to Clay, that makes you family. Transfer form went in yesterday, you are being moved over to Bravo. You’ll start right away.” Jason said.

“What?” Yoder asked, softly.

He never expected to be picked up by Bravo, especially so soon after Clay’s death. He didn’t think the guys would want a reminder of Clay everyday. 

“Part of Clay’s will was asking us to have you on Bravo. He said you would make a great number one for when the time comes. Clay’s always had good instincts, I trust him. Starting tomorrow you will be Bravo Seven.” Jason explained.

“Thank-you, I’ll do everything I can to not let you down.” Yoder said, with a thick voice.

“It’s going to be weird being called Bravo Six.” Vic said, sadly. However, on the inside he was loving this. He would finally get to be Bravo Six and he could now start to erase Clay from the team.

“You won’t be.” Jason said, with an edge to his voice.

“I don’t understand.” Vic said back.

“You will be Bravo Eight. The Bravo Six patch will be retired.” Jason said.

He wasn’t ever going to have another Bravo Six. That was Clay’s and it would always be his for as long as he was in control.

“As it should be.” Full Metal said, throwing his support behind Jason’s decision.

Normally a number doesn’t get retired, you just accept that someone else would be holding it. But in this situation it was different. Clay wasn’t just their brother or Jason’s son, he was the heart of Bravo. Something Full Metal saw in each and every single one of them. They were a team, but Clay made them a family. Clay brought not only Bravo together, but Alpha too. It was why when Clay was hurt in Manilla that Full Metal wanted to be a part of Bravo. He wanted to help bring these bastards down, but he stayed because Clay just had that effect on people. He made you want to be better, a better person, a better operative, a better brother. He was the heart of Bravo and with his death, his number should always stay with him. 

“Ya, it should.” Sonny sadly agreed.

“I get it, and I completely agree.” Vic said with understanding to his voice.

Internally though he was pissed that Clay had screwed him out of his rightful number. Still, everyone would know he was really Bravo Six and not Eight. Something else that pissed him off, Yoder was the new guy and yet he was getting ranked higher than him. It was bullshit, and something Vic was planning on correcting eventually. 

“Yoder, you can go and look through Clay’s things for anything personal you’d like to keep.” Jason said, looking to get this over and done with. He wanted to just get drunk and forget about this whole situation.

Yoder gave a nod and headed towards the stairs. Cerberus followed behind him as Yoder made his way to Clay’s bedroom. Clay’s bedroom door was open already and Yoder had to take a few shaky deep breaths before he could walk into the bedroom, into the room where Clay had been raped. Cerberus whined next to him and Yoder couldn’t help but think that Cerberus could still feel Clay’s pain radiating from this room. Yoder started to pet Cerberus’ head as he spoke.

“I know boy. I miss him too.”

Yoder knew he couldn’t stand here all day, it wasn’t going to make it easier. He had to go in and get this done, or the wound would never be able to start to heal. With a final breath Yoder headed inside the room. Cerberus followed him and was instantly up on the bed and grabbed Clay’s pillow and placed it down on the end of the bed. Yoder then watched Cerberus get off the bed and grab one of Clay’s dirty t-shirts and brought it up to the bed and placed it down on the pillow before he laid down and placed his head on it. Yoder couldn’t help but think that Cerberus had picked the items he wanted from Clay. They would smell like him and with his k9 sense of smell, he would be able to smell Clay’s scent on them a lot longer than any of them would be able to. 

Yoder started to look through Clay’s things, but he didn’t see anything that he would wish to keep. He was never a sentimental type, he kept all of his memories in his mind, he didn’t need trinkets to get him through. Yoder turned to Clay’s side tables and started to look through them. He found some photos of him, Clay and Brian back in Team Three. He collected the photos that he found, as well as Brian’s dog tags. Yoder then went over to Clay’s dresser and looked through his drawers. Clay was always keeping things in them, little tokens that he cherished over the years. He found little mementos that Clay had picked up from each tour he went on. He left them in case one of the guys wanted them. In the third drawer Yoder discovered something he didn’t expect to find. A note addressed to him. Yoder picked it up and dread was instantly flooding his whole body. They never found a suicide note, not in Clay’s truck or in his house. Officially it was ruled an accidental drowning, unofficially though they knew it was suicide. However, without a suicide note the guys had all tried to trick their minds into thinking Clay could have fallen in. Or maybe he didn’t think he was going to kill himself, but reacted without thinking. They had been making excuses as to what could have happened that day, because it was easier than knowing your brother had chosen to kill himself instead of fighting.

Yoder went and sat down on the chair in the bedroom and with a slow deep breath he opened the letter. The first thing he noticed was how shaky the writing was, there were also tear stains on the paper. Clay had been crying while he wrote this.

_ D, _

_ If you are reading this then I’m dead. I don’t know how it happened or the situation surrounding my death, but whatever it is, don’t believe it. I’ve been keeping things from the guys, from all of you, things that had been happening to me. I didn’t tell anyone because I didn’t have any proof, solid or otherwise, about who was behind it. But in my gut I know, I know who has been behind everything. The social media page, the General changing his mind, the so-called prank on base, the poisoning, and last night. Oh my god last night. He gave me a drink, he was the only one to make me a drink and he gave me two of them. Someone was with him, I don’t know who, but he had red shoes and I remember a neck tattoo of a bird or something. It was Vic, he gave me the drinks, he took me out the back door and told me he was gonna take me home. I don’t remember anything after that.  _

_ I got cameras all over the outside of my house, I checked the footage, they were turned off. My security system was disabled and I know I armed it that night, I always do. Somehow they were both turned off. I told the guys I got the security system because it was an expensive house and right on the beach, but that was a lie so they wouldn’t worry. My truck had all of my tires slashed, there was a brick through my window and I’ve been getting endless calls from a blocked number. Sometimes they hang up but other times they use a computerized voice to tell me what they are gonna do to me. I recorded them all, it’s all in my safe in my closet, you know the code. You need to get it and keep looking into it. Don’t tell anyone though, especially Jason, he’ll go off the deep end. He’ll become obsessed and that’s not fair to him. He won’t be able to handle it and it will consume him. I need you to keep it from him until you have solid proof of who it was. I’m telling you though it was Vic. All of this has been Vic.  _

_ I’m dead, I guarantee you he had something to do with it. If my death is ruled an accident, I am telling you it wasn't. I’ll keep adding to this letter, with new information as I find it. When something new happens. You’ll know everything that I do so you can find the proof that you need to stop Vic and make sure he pays. Please be careful and keep an eye on the guys. My death will hit them hard, but with Vic still on the team there is no telling who could be next. That includes yourself. You have to be careful, don’t let him get close to you and don’t go anywhere with him. If you are a threat to him, he’ll take you out. _

_ I love you. Please be careful brother. I don’t want to meet you up here too. _

_ Love Firecracker.  _

Yoder’s hand was over his mouth as he read the letter. He was expecting a suicide note addressed to him, he was not expecting this. Clay had clearly written this the day after his rape, that morning when he woke up and discovered what happened to him. He wrote this out then, so he clearly expected something could potentially happen to him. He wasn’t expecting it that soon though or he wouldn’t have gone anywhere. He would have told someone. There had been more instances happening with Clay then he had shared with them. Yoder knew the guys would be pissed, but they would also understand because they would have done the same thing. Clay was leaving this for him, because he wasn’t in Bravo right now and he would be able to remain objective in this situation. This letter though proved one thing, Clay didn't kill himself and there was a very real possibility that he was murdered on that bridge. 

Yoder got up and quickly went into Clay’s closet and over to his hidden safe. He entered Brian’s military ID and saw within the safe a single flash drive. He grabbed it and put it into his pocket before he closed the safe and made his way out of the room with his items. Yoder tucked away the letter into his back pocket so the guys wouldn’t see it. He didn’t know what to do, but he did know he had to tell someone. He couldn’t keep this to himself, it would be too dangerous. If something happened to him and he was killed, no one would know to investigate Vic. Yoder walked down the stairs and headed into the living room.

“I took Brian’s dog tags and photos of the three of us. I hope that’s ok.” 

“Of course.” Jason said.

“Cerb?” Brock asked.

“He’s on Clay’s bed. He grabbed his pillow and a dirty t-shirt of his and laid down on them.”

“I guess Cerb picked what he wanted.” Sonny said.

“He’s unsettled. He won’t eat and he just lays down on his bed all day and night. He won’t play with my other dogs anymore. Clay was his person, the one he picked, he might never recover from losing him.” Brock explained sadly.

The guys all knew how close Cerberus was with Clay and just like them Cerberus was grieving. He would need time to overcome the loss just like them. 

“Son, why don’t you go next.” Ray suggested.

“I’ll go with you.” Brock said. He wanted to see Cerberus and he knew Sonny was going to need support for this.

Sonny gave a nod and headed up the stairs with Brock. Yoder took this time to try and figure out who he should be telling about the letter. He would normally tell Jason, but Clay had said not to and he would have to trust Clay on that. He knew he couldn’t tell Sonny, he was too much of a hot head he wouldn’t be able to keep his cool around Vic. Ray was out because he was close to Vic. Vic was out for obvious reasons. That left Brock and Trent, but Yoder didn’t know them. He couldn’t say how they would react and that was too much of a risk. That only left Full Metal, he wasn’t really a hot head, more like the guy you call to get rid of a body. He was a Master Chief though and he would have a better idea of how they should proceed. Yoder looked over at Full Metal and saw that he was looking out the window. Yoder headed over to him and as he walked by he nudged Full Metal just slightly, just enough for him to look at him. Yoder pointed his eyes outside as he headed that way, he knew Full Metal would silently follow him.

Once outside Yoder continued to walk until he was down by the water. He looked back slightly and saw Full Metal following him. Full Metal spoke as he stood next to Yoder.

“What?”

“I found this in Clay’s drawer. It’s addressed to me. I don’t know what to do.” Yoder said, as he pulled the letter out and handed it to Full Metal.

Full Metal took the letter and was expecting to be reading a suicide note. He was shocked at what he did read. Instantly he was pissed. This letter was proof that Clay didn’t kill himself and he suspected Vic having a hand in his death. In all of it, including his rape. This was huge, and they had to be extremely careful on how they proceeded with this. They didn’t have proof that Vic had anything to do with everything that happened to Clay. This wasn’t something small, it was criminal. Vic could be sent away to a high security military prison for the rest of his life. This prison wouldn’t be your traditional prison, it would be one of the black sites that the military had in a third world country. He would be spending the rest of his life in a hole. This was serious, too serious to overreact and screw up. 

Full Metal let out a sigh before he spoke in his Alpha One voice. “Go back in there, act normal, get Jason to come out here. Only him.” 

“Clay said not to include him. That he would obsess over it.” Yoder immediately argued.

“I know, and he will. But Vic is on his team and he needs to know he has someone he can’t trust. If Vic did go after Clay, if he was stupid enough to go after Jason’s kid, there’s no telling what he could do to anyone else. He’ll be able to keep a level head if that means getting justice for his son. Just do it quietly, we don’t need Vic or Ray finding all of us out here. Lie if you have to.” 

“Got it.”

Yoder turned and headed back inside. The trick was going to be getting Jason out of the house without the others thinking anything suspicious was going on. Yoder headed inside and grabbed three beers. He went back into the living room and handed one to Jason as he spoke.

“Full Metal said you needed this and that you should come out and enjoy the sun. Said you can’t sit inside all day.”

Jason looked at Yoder and was about to argue about being inside when the look on Yoder’s face told Jason something else was going on. Yoder moved his eyes to outside, as he handed Jason his beer. Jason took it as he spoke.

“Fine, but just one.” 

Jason got up and Yoder headed outside with the two beers in his hands and Jason behind him. Once back over to Full Metal he handed him a beer as he opened the one left in his hand. Full Metal took the beer with a questioning look.

“I needed to give a reasonable excuse for him to be out here.” Yoder answered the unspoken question.

“What is going on?” Jason demanded, but there was no fire to his voice.

“Drink the beer and act like we are talking about the sand.” Full Metal said, as he discreetly handed Jason the letter. “Yoder found it in Clay’s drawer, it was addressed to him. You cannot react, they could be watching.”

Jason took the letter, but he had no interest in reading a suicide note. He understood why Clay took his own life. That was made very clear by the tens of thousands of text messages and emails of pure hate on his phone. It was too much for Clay and in a moment of weakness he took his own life. Jason didn’t need a letter to know how sorry Clay was for his actions. He knew he was. He didn’t blame Clay, he blamed the assholes that raped him and put it on the internet. He blamed the thousands of people that sent him messages of hate to push him over the edge. 

“I don’t need to read a suicide note. I know he’s sorry and I know why he did it.” Jason said, as he held the note out for Full Metal to take it back.

“It’s not a suicide note. Read it Jason.” Full Metal said, not budging from this. 

Jason let out a huff and opened the note. Full Metal knew once Jason read it that his attitude would change. Jason could feel himself shaking at what he was reading. He was caught between being pissed off at Clay for not saying anything and being pissed off at Vic for potentially being the one behind all of this. He knew Clay keeping quiet was only because of the team and he didn’t want to cause any problems that could get someone killed. He understood that as a team leader, but as a father, it pissed him off that Clay would keep this from him. That Clay felt like he had to keep this a secret, that he couldn’t even tell his dad what had been happening in his life. It never should have gotten this far. Jason let out a shaky breath as he put the note into his back pocket.

“We need to be very careful.” Full Metal said.

“If Vic had anything to do with this, I swear I will kill him.” Jason said, with venom dripping from his voice.

“I’ll help you bury the body. That’s not the issue, we have to prove it first. You know how serious these charges are, we need to prove it was him. And there was no way in hell he didn’t have help.” Full Metal said.

“Clay’s security system was turned off so no footage would be recorded, that had to happen somehow from outside of his house. No one had the code except you, I didn’t even have it. I didn’t understand it at first, because we’ve always had each other’s codes, but I think he did it this way on purpose. I think he wanted to make sure no one could try and pin it on me. Vic had already tried to make me the escapegoat with the social media page, it would be easy for him to point the finger at me again.” Yoder supplied.

“We need to know who he is working with. It could be the man that raped Clay. “ Full Metal said.

“Here’s what we’re gonna do. We’re gonna go back in there and act like you didn’t find this note. Once everyone is gone we are going to head to the base and inform Eric of this. I’ll give him a call and ask him to pull Clay’s autopsy. We never got to see the official report.” 

“If the kid was pushed into that river, there would be handprint bruising on his back. It might not show up right away, we might need to exhume him to do a proper autopsy.” Full Metal said, gently.

“I know, and I’ll sign off on it if that is what we need to get whoever is responsible for his death. I am not going to have my son in the ground and the person responsible for his death walking around. Especially if that person is on this team. We do this quietly and we keep it away from them. We get the answers ourselves and once we have solid proof, we let them know.” Jason said.

“Agreed.” Full Metal said.

Yoder gave a nod in agreement. He didn’t want to keep this from everyone, especially with him being new to the team, but he wasn’t going to risk finding Clay’s killer for anything. They didn’t have solid proof, but Yoder knew in his gut that Clay didn’t drown by accident. Someone killed him and he was going to find out who it was if it was the last thing he did. They all made their way back inside and acted like they had not just discovered this huge piece of information. It wasn’t easy, but they stayed quiet as each team member went through Clay’s things and kept one or two things for themselves. When Cerb came down he had both Clay’s pillow and t-shirt in his mouth. Brock picked them up for him, but Cerb only allowed him to take Clay’s pillow, he refused to give up the shirt. Vic went over to pet Cerberus as he spoke.

“You really miss him eh boy?”

When Vic went to reach out to pet Cerberus, Cerberus did something none of them expected. He snarled and attacked out at Vic’s hand. Vic snapped it back just in time to avoid getting Cerb’s mouth locked around it. 

“Cerb, bad.” Brock instantly said. He knew Cerberus had been acting differently since Clay’s death, but he didn’t think he would be dangerous to the guys. 

Yoder, Full Metal and Jason’s eyes were instantly on Cerberus and Vic. Cerberus attacking Vic signalled a lot to them and they couldn’t help but wonder if he smelled Vic in Clay’s bedroom. 

“I’m sorry he must have thought you were trying to take Clay’s shirt from him. Are you ok? He didn’t get you right?” Brock asked Vic.

“Naw I moved away. And don’t worry about it. He’s a dog, he can’t exactly express his feelings with words. I know Clay meant a lot to him.” Vic said, with complete understanding to his voice. Even though on the inside he would have loved to kick the shit out of Cerberus for even trying to attack him.

“I need to get back to Naima and the kids. They’re taking this really hard.” Ray said.

“Ya of course. Give them my love.” Jason said.

One by one the guys started to head out, leaving only Jason, Yoder and Full Metal. Jason pulled out his phone and called Blackburn, after three rings he answered.

“Blackburn.”

“I’m on my way to the base, I need you to pull Clay’s official autopsy please.”

“Alright, why though?” Blackburn asked, uncertain by this.

“I’ll explain when I get there. Just trust me and pull it.” 

“Alright, I’ll meet you in the war room with it.”

“Thanks Eric.”

Jason ended the call and stood up. The others following his lead as they all headed out of the house and got into their own vehicles. They headed off for the base where they could hopefully get more information on Clay’s death. The tension in the cars was thick. They all wanted to know what the truth was and they wanted to get to the bottom of everything. They now had a suspect and they needed to find some proof to make it all stick. Once they arrived on base they immediately headed inside and to Bravo’s war room. They walked in to see Blackburn there already and he didn’t look impressed.

“What’s going on?” Blackburn asked, not even giving them a chance to say anything.

Yoder locked the door as Jason spoke, handing the letter to Blackburn as he did. “Yoder found a letter addressed to him in Clay’s dresser.”

Blackburn started to read the letter and instantly he knew why Jason had all but demanded to meet him and Clay’s autopsy report. This letter changed everything. After reading it, Blackburn addressed them.

“I went to access Clay’s autopsy report, but it was restricted access only. I made a few calls and not even Lindell or Admiral Andersom could access it.” 

“What does that mean? Why would it be so highly secured?” Yoder asked.

“They’re hiding something.” Full Metal answered.

“If this is Vic, he has someone higher up helping him.” Jason instantly said.

“My money is on General White. He was an exile and then after we got back from tour he was back on base here. Vic could be working with him, it would explain how General White knew that Clay would be the one to take the beating over him.” Blackburn said, before he turned to look at Jason. “You think there was foul play with his death.”

“I think suicide didn’t make sense for Clay. Not for him. I can understand being in the moment and emotions and with his level of autism it would be harder. But Swaneys’ death hit him hard. He told me he couldn’t imagine doing that to someone, despite the level of pain you were in. It didn't make sense that he wouldn’t have left a note for us, for me. That he didn’t reach out to me or to Emma. Clay was more stubborn than all of us, I can’t see him just giving up and letting these people win.” Jason answered. 

“One night when Clay was twenty, we had some beers and we were talking about growing up. He had questions about what it was like to grow up gay. Clay told me that while his grandparents were alive Ash would show up once a year to see him. It was to make him look good and not for Clay, but that didn’t stop Clay from being happy about seeing him. He was ten when it was the last time his grandparents ever let Ash come down to see him. Ash had taken him to the beach, he had tried to kill him.” Yoder started.

“He what?” Jason, snapped.

“He tried to drown him, almost succeeded but people walked by and Ash had to make it look good. Clay woke up on the beach to Ash giving him mouth to mouth. Clay told his grandparents and they made sure Ash never came back while they were alive. I always suspected he came back after their death and was abusive to him. I tried to press over the years, but Clay always shuts down on it. The point though, ever since that day Clay’s biggest fear is drowning. Me and Brian are the only ones that know that. If Clay was going to kill himself, he would have taken pills and gone to sleep. He would have left a note and made sure there wasn’t a mess. The very last thing he would have done is drown.” Yoder finished.

“He’s right.” Full Metal said. “That kid is organized. His cage is always clean, his house is always clean. He doesn’t like messes, we all know that, but Vic wouldn’t have. He doesn’t pay that close attention to Clay. If he was going to kill himself, his house would have been clean. The sheets would have been washed, his dishes would have been done and put away. He wouldn’t have left dishes in the sink, the bloody sheets for his bed. The dirty laundry in his basket. Everything would have been cleaned, and he would have had all of his paperwork sitting out for us with a note. Even his death, he would have made it clean, like taking pills. Something that wouldn’t have a mess. His actions aren’t reflecting who Clay is at his core. I don’t even think he could go to bed with a dish in his sink.” 

“He can’t. I’ve seen it, he does the same thing every night before bed. He makes sure the dishes are done, put away, every window and door is locked, twice, he double checks his truck is locked. Then he gets changed, reads for an hour, and then goes to sleep. Even when he stayed at my place for the two weeks he was sick, after he felt better he would make sure the place was clean before he could settle down to sleep. I figured it had to be connected to his autism and that need for a routine. Clay’s compulsion wouldn’t have allowed him to kill himself knowing his house was in that state.” Jason said.

Now that he was calmer and not weighed down by Clay’s apparent suicide, he could think clearly. Clay’s actions weren’t lining up with who Clay was. Yes in a heightened emotional state parts would be different, but not to this level.

“When we got the call that Clay’s body was found in the river, I went back to the scene. The bridge he apparently jumped from was ten feet in the air, the river was only five feet deep.” Blackburn started.

“It’s not that easy to drown in water shorter than you. He would have had to sit down or lay down and fight every instinct in his body to not stand up. Even if he was going to kill himself by drowning, he lives on the beach. He could have just walked out and started swimming until he ran out of energy. It would have been easier.” Full Metal said.

“You can’t get his autopsy report at all?” Yoder asked.

“I can’t even get Clay’s military file. The whole thing has been classified as a high valued military asset. It’s all redacted and restricted. I can’t even get into it anymore.” Blackburn answered.

“Someone is going through a lot of trouble to make sure Clay’s death stays as an accidental drowning.” Full Metal said, not liking the level of security that has been placed around Clay’s death.

“We don’t have a choice, we need to exhume him. If he jumped from that height into water that shallow, he’ll have injuries to his legs. If he was pushed, he'd have bruising on his back and an injury to his head.” Jason said.

“If he was pushed, which I think he was, a head injury would explain how he drowned. He could have been unconscious.” Full Metal said.

“I understand why you need to know the truth, I’m not trying to stop you, but I do have to be realistic. In order to exhume the body of a Seal, it takes about a week to get the paperwork approved. However, with Clay being classified as a military asset we are looking at months up to a year to get it approved. It could be years to get it approved if we continue to be blocked. We would also need a valid reason to search and a letter written by Clay won’t be enough. The writing is messy, the military could argue Clay didn’t write it. Not to mention whoever is helping to cover this up and helping Vic, they could come after Bravo. They could call the team unstable, call you Jason unstable and have you removed. We have to assume the person that is helping Vic has to hate you just as much as Clay.” Blackburn said.

“So getting Clay exhumed is impossible basically.” Yoder said, not happy about this.

“There has to be a common denominator though in the Upper Brass that hates Jason and Clay. We saw how many political figures and Upper Brass were at Clay’s funeral. How many of them were genuinely upset by his death. There has to be a small amount of Upper Brass that hates Clay.” Full Metal said.

“Or someone that hates Ash so much they targeted Clay as payback.” Yoder said.

“What about Ash? He runs a security firm with different hackers working for him. He could have easily by-passed Clay’s security system.” Jason said.

“We never did figure out who had called Ash when the kid was in the hospital. It could have been Vic.” Full Metal suggested.

“It’s possible. If you want we can look into it, I would suggest we bring Mandy up to speed on everything. She’ll be able to look into this more without causing any waves. This needs to be done completely under the radar.” Blackburn said.

“What about Admiral Anderson, can we get him to approve a discrete wire?” Jason asked.

“I could probably get that granted. It would need to be fully redacted and classified to make sure no one can view it. But we would probably be able to get mics within Ash’s, and Vic’s home. We could even get a mic in General White’s home and office. We would have to place them very well hidden and when no one was around.” Blackburn answered.

“We can be stealthy.” Full Metal said. 

“You do know though Jason, we would need to keep this completely hidden from the team. You will have to lie to them until we know for certain what truly happened and who is behind it. Can you be around Vic and treat him just like another member of the team, knowing he might be the reason Clay is not only dead, but had been raped?” Blackburn said, as he looked right at Jason.

“If it gets me the truth about his death. If it gets me the ones responsibile for my son’s death and rape. I’ll be his best friend and when it’s time I’ll stab him right in the back.” Jason said with a deadly calm to his voice.

All he cared about was getting justice for Clay. he didn’t care what he had to do to get it, he would. If that meant he had to act like nothing was different. If he had to lie to his brothers and pretend like Vic was one of the guys, he would do it in a heartbeat. All he cared about was getting justice for his son.

“Alright, I’ll speak with Mandy and Admiral Anderson and get the process started. For now, act like everything is normal.” Blackburn said.

The guys all gave a nod and headed out. Once they were outside, Full Metal nodded his head to his truck and the guys all got into it. 

“We’re gonna have a problem with not having proof of it being murder. People will still argue that Clay either slipped and drowned or killed himself. We need the proof not just to get who is responsible, but as his brothers, we need to know.” Full Metal started.

“I agree, but we can’t exhume him. It’s not possible.” Jason said.

“Not legally.” Full Metal argued back.

“What are you talking about?” Yoder asked, not liking the sound of that.

“You have to ask yourself how far are you willing to go to get the truth. How far are you willing to go to get justice for Clay? For your son?” Full Metal said to Jason, before he turned to look at Yoder. “For your brother?” 

“There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do.” Jason immediately said.

“Same.” Yoder agreed.

“If we can’t legally exhume him, there’s only one real option left. We do it ourselves.” Full Metal stated.

“You want to dig him up?” Yoder asked, shocked and uncomfortable with the idea of being the one to do it.

“We need to know about injuries, about any bruising that could be there that wasn’t reported. He was dead and buried within forty-eight hours, that’s pretty fucking fast. I know war heroes that died in an explosion overseas take two weeks to get buried from all of the paperwork. Yet the kid can be buried at Presidential speed? Bruising can take time to form after death, it’s like they were trying to get the autopsy done as fast as possible so no one would see the bruising.” Full Metal said. 

“And they place him as a military asset so it becomes harder for anyone to ever read his autopsy report or to exhume him later on. Something is being hidden and we need to know what. If having to exhume him ourselves is the only option we have, then I’ll do it.” Jason said. 

This was not what any of them wanted to be doing, but if it meant getting the answers they needed, they would do it. They would do it for Clay to ensure whoever was responsible paid the price.

“When?” Yoder asked.

“Tonight. I got shovels, the dirt is still fresh. It will be easier to do it tonight before they lay sod down.” Full Metal answered.

“We meet tonight at his grave at ten o’clock. We’ll get some answers tonight and then we can proceed from there.” Jason said.

Both Yoder and Full Metal gave a nod. This was not going to be easy, but it was something they had to do. They would do anything for Clay, even dig him up.

XXX   
  


It was just before ten that night when Yoder, Full Metal and Jason were walking towards Clay’s grave. They each had a shovel and a flashlight with them and they were prepared to get this done tonight. They arrived at Clay’s grave and immediately noticed they weren’t alone. 

“I had a feeling you were going to do this.” Blackburn said.

“You here to stop us?” Jason asked.

“Wouldn’t have brought a shovel if I was.” Blackburn said, as he picked up a shovel that was leaning against the tree.

“You could have gotten started.” Full Metal pointed out.

“I’m old, I’m not digging up a body alone. Mandy and Admiral Anderson have been briefed and both are pissed. Anderson gave us a green light for mics and hidden cameras in Vic’s home and car. White’s home, car and office. Ash’s home, car and office. He said be careful doing it and make sure they were well hidden so they cannot be detected by a scanner. Mandy is going to start working her magic and see if she can find out who is in the rape video. She is going to use some CIA contacts that are not connected to the military to try and eliminate the electronic overlay on their voices. She is also going to look into everything Clay said had been happening, including the phone calls. She’ll let us know when she gets something.” 

“Good, now all that is left is to find out the real cause of death.” Jason said, as he looked down at the grave of where his son was resting. 

“You sure?” Full Metal asked.

“We have to know.” Was all Jason said, before he went over and put the shovel into the dirt.

Together the four of them worked on removing the dirt covering Clay’s casket. It was a long process that had them all exhausted by the end of it, but after three hours they had finally hit the top of the casket. With the dirt removed the guys all stood there looking down at the brown top of Clay’s casket. He hadn’t been dead long enough to decompose, so they wouldn’t have to worry about that. However, they hadn’t been able to see him after his death. It was a closed casket for the funeral like all traditional military funerals were. He was also removed from the morgue within hours, not giving Jason the time to go down there to see him. Now that he was here, Jason wasn't sure he could do this. He wasn’t sure he could look down and see his son dead, laying in a casket. He knew he had to do this, but he didn't think he could stomach it. He didn’t think he could handle having this image forever seared into his brain. 

“I’ll go.” Full Metal said, knowing that his friend wouldn’t be able to tolerate this.

Full Metal stuck his shovel in the pile of dirt before he jumped down. He went over to the head of the casket and grabbed the edge of the opening. He let out a slow breath, giving himself a moment to prepare, before he pulled the opening up. It was only part way open when Full Metal stopped.

“For fuck sakes.”

“What?” Jason asked.

“You are not going to believe this.” Full Metal said.

He pulled the top half of the casket open and he stepped back, allowing the others to see. Right where Clay’s head should have been was empty. There was no body.

“Where is he?” Yoder asked, shocked.

Full Metal moved so he could open the bottom half, only to discover heavy rocks instead of a body. The casket was empty, Clay had never been in it.

“This doesn’t make any sense. Why bury an empty casket? Where would they put his body?” Yoder asked, completely confused.

“There is no body.” Full Metal said.

“What?” Yoder asked.

“He’s not dead.” Jason said, as the wheels in his head started to turn.

There was no reason to hide a body, especially when everyone believed Clay committed suicide. There was no reason to have a whole fake funeral only to remove the body afterwards. The only reason you go through with a funeral and classify his military file was if you had something to hide. Whatever happened to Clay on that bridge did not result in his death. Clay was alive, his son was alive and out there in the world somewhere.

“But why?” Yoder asked.

“Because there are worse things in this life then death. If they wanted Clay to suffer, killing him wouldn’t do that. Keeping him alive somewhere all alone being hurt, knowing that no one would be there to rescue him, that is suffering.” Full Metal said.

“And they get the added pleasure of watching Bravo suffer. You all would have continued to believe Clay killed himself. Whoever they are, would get to watch as Bravo slowly drifted apart. You remove the heart of a team, the team dies slowly and painfully. This goes up higher than we thought. To be able to fake an autopsy, a funeral, everything, it takes someone with very high connections and deep pockets.” Blackburn said.

“We will figure it out. Clay is alive, and we will find him.” Jason said with pure determination in his voice.

Gone was the grieving father and in its place was Bravo One. He had a man out there and he was going to find Clay and bring him home. They were going to bring Clay home safe and alive and they were going to get every single person responsible for his kidnapping. Jason didn’t care how long it took. This was not a mission he was going to fail. Clay was going to be coming home, no matter what. 

XXX

Slowly, bit by bit Clay felt himself starting to wake up. His head felt very weird, like there was this fog flooding his head. He couldn’t think properly. He couldn’t even find the strength to open his eyes. The circuit within his mind that told his eyes to open wasn’t working. Clay tried to hear what was going on around him, but he couldn’t hear anything at all. His ears felt like he was under water, everything was muffled and sounded like he was a thousand miles away from them. Clay tried to focus his mind on the last thing he remembered, but it hurt a lot to try and think. Still, Clay pushed through the pain and tried to recall the last thing he remembered. There was a house party, he was there to see Yoder, but he got spun up. Vic had given him two drinks. He then remembered feeling horrible and then nothing. He woke up in his bed with blood on him. Clay remembered he had been drugged, he suspected by Vic, and then raped by someone. Someone else had recorded it and put it all over the internet. Clay could still clearly remember some of the emails and text messages that he had received about it. They were all vial and abusive, telling him how much he must have loved it. 

The pain from the memories hit Clay full force and it took every ounce of strength that he had to push the pain away. He needed to focus on his memories of what was going on, not on the pain that was flooding his heart. There was a drive, he went for a drive to the bridge. He liked to go there to think, it was quiet and peaceful. It helped to calm his mind down when everything in the world was so loud. It was the one place where he could go to shut his mind off and just be at peace. Clay had driven there and he left his phone so he wouldn’t have to deal with the messages and emails. Bravo was away for an operation, but even if they were Stateside he didn’t want to talk to them. He couldn’t handle that part yet. Clay remembered thinking he would stay with Jason for a bit. He remembered sitting on the bridge’s railing and then something was over his mouth before it all went dark. 

That was it, that was all Clay could remember. The fact that something was put over his mouth and knocked him out meant he had to have been kidnapped. Someone grabbed him. Clay couldn’t help but wonder how long he had been out for. If it was long enough then Bravo would be Stateside and they would go looking for him once they touched down. There was no way they weren’t going to know about the video. Something that was mortifying to him, but at this point it was a good thing, because they would be going to his place and looking for him. They would see his cell phone was there, but his truck wasn't. They would find him. All he had to do was hold on long enough for them to find him. Part of that though, was opening his eyes.

Clay used every ounce of strength that he had and forced his mind to function long enough for him to open his eyes and see where the hell he was. He could tell he was laying on something lumpy and hard. It didn’t feel like the ground, more like padding. The place he was in felt cold and it smelt damp and musty. Clay figured it must be a basement. Clay could feel something on his face, but he couldn’t figure out what it was. Clay forced his eyes open and slowly he was able to blink them open enough for him to start to make out the room. His vision was blurry so Clay blinked a bunch of times before his eyes seemed to clear up. He went to rub them, but he quickly discovered that both of his wrists were restrained. Clay followed his arm up to his hand and saw that his wrist was restrained by a rusty old metal shackle to the wall. Both of his arms were spread as far apart as they could go with them restrained to a wall. Clay also noticed he was laying on his stomach and he could feel both of his legs spread wide and his ankles had their own shackles attached to them that went into the floor. Most disturbingly, Clay realised he was naked laying on an old and disgustingly dirty thin mattress on the floor. The thing on his mouth was strapped around his head and there was a thick circle part in his mouth, it was keeping it open. Clay tried to get it off, but the jiggling on the back told him it was locked and needed a key to be removed. 

Clay could feel his body starting to tremble, he knew none of this was good. There was only one reason why he would be kept like this and it wasn't anything good. Fear was flooding into his body, Clay couldn’t help it. He had just woken up after being date raped, he couldn’t go through this again. He couldn’t be awake while it was happening to him. To feel it in real time, to be able to remember it for the rest of his life. Clay couldn’t do this, he couldn’t. Clay started to pull on the restraints, he didn’t care if he broke his wrist or ankle, he had to get out of this position he had to give himself a chance to fight his way out of here. Clay continued to pull on the restraints for a good thirty minutes. The longer it was taking the harder he was pulling, he had blood going down both wrists and his ankles from his struggles. Clay didn't care though, he wasn't going to stop until he was free.

“That’s not going to work.” A male voice said, coming out of nowhere.

Clay stopped what he was doing and looked around. The problem was the area he was in was small, about the size of a jail cell, there was no one in here with him. Even if the only light in the place was from a very dim lightbulb in the ceiling. Clay couldn’t even call out because of the gag in his mouth.

“They’ll know you’re awake now, they’ll send someone in there soon. The best thing you can do is not fight, fighting makes it worse. And when they take that gag out, don’t speak. They don’t like it when you speak english.”

Clay was beyond confused now. The man’s voice was exhausted and weak, it was also slightly muffled from the wall between them, but he could have sworn he had an accent. It sounded almost African, but that only confused Clay more. He wished he could have asked questions, he wished he could have talked back to try and figure out what the hell was going on, because right now none of this made any sense. Before Clay could even contemplate more, the lock on his door was being thrown back and the door was opening. Clay turned his head as best as he could to see who had kidnapped him. Only it was two black men that walked in and their clothes were not american. Both men walked over to him and the one closest to him punched him hard across the head as he spoke.

“ዘቤት እንስሳ.” The man said.

Clay tried to clear his head from the blow. He tried to process the words that the man had said, but his head was ringing and the world would not stop spinning. Clay vaguely heard more words being spoken before the door was closing once again. Clay managed to open his eyes only to see the second man was still in the room, and this time he was naked. 

“ጽብቕ ኢኺ. እዚ I'm happy እዩ.” The man said.

It was in this moment when Clay’s mind was able to pick up on two vital pieces of information. The first, he wasn’t in the United States anymore. The second, and possibly the more terrifying piece of information he had learnt in the past ten minutes. He had no idea what language they were talking. If he didn’t know what language it was, he not only wouldn’t know what they were saying to him, what they wanted him to do. Plus, he couldn’t tell you where in the world he was. He had been kidnapped back in Virginia Beach, he had been kept drugged long enough to get him to wherever he was in the world. All of this happened and Bravo wasn’t here to kick in the door. They didn’t know where he was, and it could take years before they found him. They might never find him in time. Clay was going to be trapped in this hole all alone with no idea of how long he would have to survive. He knew his brothers would come. He knew his dad would come for him, but the odds were they would find him dead. For the first time since his grandparents had been killed, Clay had never felt so alone in his life. As the man got closer and grabbed a chunk of his hair and pulled his head back. Clay closed his eyes and did the only thing he could think of that would help him escape from his new hell. He started to recite The Hobbit and he was hoping by the end of the book his family would be storming in here and freeing him. 

_ In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.  _

The End.

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yup that is it for this book in the series. Next book will time jump to six months later and we will see just what it takes for our guys to actually discover Clay is not dead, but rather being tortured and raped this whole time. Make sure you check back for the new book to be released. I am going to write a companion piece as well that will showcase Yoder and Ali. As well make sure you follow my other Seal Team stories as I work on getting them all wrapped up for you!


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